His Saving Grace
by Besh4221
Summary: Gohan's life isn't easy. It probably won't ever be. Thank Kami for Videl, his saving grace. Rated M for trauma, swearing, and lemon later on. Gohan/Videl. A/U. R&R. Now complete.
1. Prologue: The First Cut is the Deepest

**A/N: **Well, here's yet another idea that popped into my head while I'm focusing on my much larger story, MagicKi: An HPDBZ Story. It probably won't be all that long. I've been feeling in a very darkly optimistic mood as of late. Basically, happiness awaits people, but only if they can get through the hardships that lie on the pathway there. That's what I'm going for here. It's Gohan/Videl, the biggest DBZ ship I support, although the romance more than likely won't be the main focus. More often, it'll focus more on what Videl does for Gohan. It'll take a while to get them there, and even when they do become friends, true happiness won't come immediately.

The prologue provides a look into the Goku/ChiChi dynamic that will be in this story. There won't be much happiness for Goku, either. The fanfic will kind of hinge on both of them for a period of time.

I'm writing this sort of as a way to siphon off all the darkness swirling around in my mind. I have more comments, but they'd be better as part of the warnings. One note before I do that: this is beta'd by me and only me. My Spell Check hasn't let me down yet, so...We'll just have to wait and see.

**Warnings: **This is A/U. They're all normal. Well, normal in that none of them are aliens and the Earth isn't in constant danger. There will be swearing early on here and onward throughout, and lemons later on in the fanfiction. As such, I'm rating this M right here and now. Better to play it safe than be sorry that I didn't. There will also be a number of original characters, and, for most of them, their main purpose is to antagonize Gohan. They'll get what's coming to them, I promise, but it won't be for a while yet.

Anyway, I took a lot of poetic license here, obviously, since I made this so A/U. Goku, ChiChi, Gohan, and Videl will all be rather OOC, but that's because this stays far away from any sort of Dragon World canon, except that Gohan and Videl do eventually get together. If A/U fanfictions aren't your thing, please don't read this and then give me bad reviews. I'm not interested, particularly if I'm giving you warning here and now.

Double anyway, a final note before we get this underway: Videl's last name in this is Filcure. "Filcure", if you notice, happens to be an anagram of "Lucifer". And now...

The title is part of a lyric from "The First Cut is the Deepest" by Sheryl Crow.

**Disclaimer: **The fun about this sentence is that you don't realize it doesn't say anything until you've finished reading it. Also, I don't own any of the recognizable characters I've mentioned here. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, and Jenifyr Stone are mine, and any names you may recognize from another fanfiction are entirely coincidental, I promise.

"This" - indicates dialogue.  
'This' - indicates thought.  
**This **- indicates emphasis, in place of CAPSLOCK.

**His Saving Grace**

**Prologue - The First Cut is the Deepest**

Gohan walked into the living room on the morning of his first day of kindergarten, and winced. The living room was in shambles, cushions from the couch all over the floor, the coffee table was covered in coasters and empty shot glasses and rolled up pieces of paper. The end tables had assorted food stuffs on them, laden so thickly Gohan couldn't see the actual table underneath it. On the couch itself was a huge pile of blankets.

He really wanted to stay home and clean, but then his mother would chastise him for not going to school and getting an education. But if he went to school and left the house the way it was, he'd get yelled at upon his return for being so messy. Nothing he did was any good in his mother's eyes. Gohan got the feeling that she really did care for him and his father way deep down, but was so used to showing it through anger and reprimanding that she didn't know any other way to show it.

Not that Gohan's father was any help, Gohan thought in that oddly blatant way that five-year-olds have. He didn't know what his dad was drinking, but it almost always fell to Gohan to pick up those bottles and find someplace to throw them away. If he didn't, then his mom would find out and she would get mad and yell again.

Gohan let out a sigh and scuffed the floor with the toe of his shoe before heading toward the front door, picking his way through the aftermath. His dad liked to throw parties, and he told Gohan that it was just a way for him to hang out with his grown-up friends, so Gohan didn't think too much of it.

He'd just placed his hand on the doorknob and was turning it when he heard a raspy voice say, "Gohan? Gohan, that you?" Gohan bit his lip, but turned to where he'd heard the voice anyway. The pile of blankets on the couch shifted, and Gohan realized that his dad had slept on the couch. "Where are you going, Gohan?" his dad asked, rubbing his eyes blearily.

"I'm going to school, Daddy," Gohan said, barely managing to contain a bright smile and keep his voice down. His dad had started to rub the sides of his head, which Gohan knew meant that he had to be extra quiet so that his dad's head wouldn't hurt too badly. "It's my first day of kindergarten."

"Oh…" Gohan's dad muttered something under his breath that Gohan couldn't hear. Then, he said, "Well, hold on a minute, son, and I'll get ready so I can walk you to school."

"Daddy, that's okay. You're sleepy, right? That means you should sleep," Gohan said, shaking his head as he watched his dad stand up nevertheless. His dad winced, and Gohan said, "Really, Daddy, it's okay if you want to sleep some more. It's okay, honest."

"No, Gohan, it's your first day, and I'll be blasted if I let you show up to school alone," his dad replied, and smiled at Gohan. Gohan returned the smile.

"Okay, Daddy," Gohan said, and watched as his dad walked sleepily toward his bedroom and opened the door, slipping inside.

Ten minutes later, Goku re-emerged from the bedroom looking a little disgruntled, but smiled at Gohan again. "All right, bud, let's get you to school."

Gohan nodded happily and opened the door wide, letting the bright sunlight in. He thought he heard his dad hiss a little, but when he looked behind him, Goku was already outside and shutting the door behind him. "We don't want you to be late, do we?" Gohan shook his head, and they left, father and son, side by side, Gohan's little hand enveloped in his father's much bigger one.

Gohan was happy that his dad was walking him to school, but the mess in the living room kept showing up in his head. Finally, just before they turned the corner to get to the campus of Orange Star Kindergarten, Gohan asked, "Daddy, am I going to get yelled at when I get home?"

"No, Gohan, of course not," his father replied. "Why would you think you would?"

Gohan fidgeted for a minute with his backpack strap, then said, "Because…the living room was messy, and Mommy will yell at me if it isn't clean…" He looked up at his father, whose face had hardened. "I just don't want to get yelled at. Not on my first day of school. That isn't bad, is it, Daddy?"

"No, Gohan, it isn't," his father replied. "I will worry about your mother. Just enjoy your day, all right?"

"Okay, Daddy!" Gohan said happily, fears of getting in trouble wiped from his mind. "I think the bell will ring soon, so I have to go. I love you, Daddy," he said, and received a hug from his father.

"I love you too, Gohan. Have a good first day, bud. I'll be here when school is over to walk you home, too, okay?" Gohan nodded and gave his dad one last hug before turning around and walking through the gate around the schoolyard. Just before he walked in with the other kids, he turned around and saw his dad standing there outside the gate. Gohan began to feel scared; it had just registered that he wouldn't be around his dad for a long time. It was only until the afternoon, but to Gohan it was a long time to spend away from the man who'd always been near him.

He waved to his dad, who gave him a smile and a wave back, and then Gohan turned and walked into the school, trying to dampen down his fear and anxiety. 'I'm going to have a good day, just like Daddy told me to,' he thought, and the thought of his dad made him feel like he was being hugged by Goku. It made him feel a lot better.

Goku stood outside for a long time after everyone had gone inside the school, trying to get his thoughts together. He knew three things for sure: He was going to have to be here in about eight hours, he'd had another party last night, and he was going to have to deal with an angry ChiChi. 'Like that's any different from any other day,' he thought, rolling his eyes. Turning around, he headed back to the house.

He honestly didn't know where things had gone so wrong with him and ChiChi. Before Gohan, they'd been your basic newlywed young adults in love. They were joined at the hip, never did anything without the other. And though ChiChi had made him unbelievably happy all the time, Goku had secretly felt in his heart that he was floating, a ship with no anchor.

Then Gohan had been born, and he'd given Goku the rock he'd been searching for. Goku adored everything about his son. ChiChi had been the same way when Gohan was a newborn, but sometime around when Gohan turned six or seven months old, Goku noticed that ChiChi had gotten oddly distant. He honestly hadn't had the slightest clue what had happened to make her so sour, and had constantly tried to get to the bottom of it with little success.

He'd finally found out one day when they were both playing with Gohan. Goku had had him and was spinning him around, and Gohan had been laughing. Then ChiChi, smiling, had held her hands out for Gohan, and Goku had given him to her. Once he'd let go, though, Gohan started to fuss. ChiChi had tried to bounce him up and down, but Gohan wouldn't have it. He'd opened his mouth and let out a loud cry, twisting around and holding out his arms to Goku.

Goku had looked in ChiChi's eyes and seen the flash of pain there, but it was gone so quickly he wasn't sure whether he'd imagined it or not. He'd held out his hands, and ChiChi had glared at him. Again, it was over so quickly that Goku had barely had time to frown before it was gone and she'd handed Gohan to him. ChiChi had murmured something about going to get Gohan's crib ready for his coming nap, and then left. Goku had nodded and started playing with Gohan again, but he'd made a silent resolution to find out what was bothering the mother of his firstborn.

Soon enough, Gohan had been yawning widely, and Goku had walked him gently into the bedroom and set him in the crib. ChiChi had just finished setting it up, and she stepped aside to let Goku put Gohan to sleep, and then she twisted the mobile and left without a word.

Goku had followed her after shutting the door, and then said, "ChiChi, what's wrong with you?"

ChiChi had rounded on him, eyes flashing, and Goku had realized that things could get very ugly very quickly. He wasn't disappointed.

"What do you mean what's wrong with me?" she'd demanded.

"I mean, why have you been acting so distant lately? It's a little hard to tell, but it usually happens whenever we're spending time with Gohan. You get distant, and then you get snappy when I ask you what's wrong. Then you leave. I want to know - "

"You know what, Goku?" ChiChi had asked. "Maybe my **problem** is with you!"

"Why, what did I do?"

"What about stealing my fucking son?!"

Goku had been mystified. "ChiChi, what are you talking about?"

"Oh, please, don't give me any of your shit," ChiChi had spat, venom in her tone. "It isn't enough that our child is a **boy**, but he's also named after you, he looks more like you than he does me, **and** he even fucking likes you more!"

"ChiChi, you're acting crazy - "

"Am I? Am I **really**?" ChiChi had screamed. Goku, in a desperate attempt to get her to **shut up**, had grabbed her by the shoulders and shaken her roughly.

"ChiChi, shut up. Shut the hell up. Yes, you are really acting crazy. What happened with Gohan today wasn't because he likes me more. How could you think that?"

"Well then what the hell was it?" ChiChi asked, trying to get out of Goku's unloosening grip.

"He was tired, ChiChi. He did end up falling asleep not five minutes after you'd given him back. He just hadn't wanted to move anywhere, not when he was sleepy."

"That's what it was?" ChiChi had asked warily, becoming less and less tense. Goku had nodded, and ChiChi's eyes had softened. "I'm sorry, Goku," she said contritely. "I was being…irrational."

"I know, and I forgive you," Goku said, letting go off ChiChi's shoulders. However, he'd only moved his hands to her hips and pulled her toward him, pressing his lips against her own. ChiChi had let out a small sigh, and her eyes had slipped shut.

When she pulled away and opened her eyes, Goku could've sworn he'd still seen a hint of suspicion in them. But then it was replaced entirely by softness, and Goku had placed it out of his mind.

'Really fucking bad idea,' Goku thought ruefully as he opened the front door of the house and stepped inside. It had been a bad idea because it had come back up when Gohan's first word had been "Daddy". That fight had been much more serious, and that was when ChiChi had started pulling away for good, only staying out of some feeble (in her mind, anyway) hope that Gohan would still show some sort of predisposition toward his mother.

Around the same time ChiChi had started pulling away, Goku had started discovering the wonders of liquor. He'd never drank to excess, always stopping once he'd gotten a light buzz. The alcohol put his worries out of his mind for a while. But he was always careful never to drink in front of Gohan or drink too much. He'd risk nothing in taking care of Gohan.

Gohan was his whole world, and Goku had sworn on the moment of Gohan's birth that he would never leave his firstborn son alone, no matter what. Gohan had been Goku's saving grace, and Goku would make sure that Gohan knew that he was loved every second of every minute of every day of his life.

"There you are!" ChiChi yelled, startling Goku out of his thoughts. "Where the hell have you been, where the hell is Gohan, and **why the fuck is this place such a damn pigsty**?!"

Goku winced and rubbed the bridge of his nose before replying calmly, "I took Gohan to school, Gohan is at school, and it's messy because I hadn't gotten around to cleaning it yet."

"Cleaning up around the house is Gohan's responsibility," ChiChi retorted, placing her hands on her hips. "It'll teach him character, a trait **someone** in this house seems to be sorely lacking."

"I know exactly what you're talking about," Goku replied. "What do you plan to do to change yourself, ChiChi?"

"Ex**cuse** me?!" ChiChi screeched. "How dare you?! I have character up to my ears! You're the one with no character, always drinking and lying, making a complete sty of the house **all the time** - "

"And yet I'm not the one yelling," Goku cut in mildly, and ChiChi actually snarled at him.

"Fine, Mr. Character! Clean up your mess. You'd better hope it fucking sparkles," she said coldly, and spun on her heel, stomping to the bedroom and slamming the door shut behind her.

Goku sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose again, then went to make a pot of coffee to get rid of this awful hangover. 'So much for keeping my drinking under control,' Goku thought wryly. Then, in the next instant, he thought, 'I do have it under control. What am I talking about? As long as it doesn't keep me from being a part of Gohan's life, it's fine.'

Eight hours, a pot of coffee, lots of swearing and muttering, and countless amounts of cleaning solution later, Goku took a shower before going to get dressed. ChiChi didn't talk to him, simply stared at him coldly for a few moments before going back to her TV show. Goku shook his head, but got dressed and left for the school to get Gohan.

Gohan wiped his eyes and nose for what seemed like the bajillionth time and did his best to ignore the whispering around him as he waited for the last bell to ring so that he could go home. His first day of kindergarten hadn't been nearly as exciting as he'd managed to convince himself it would be.

The teacher had taken roll call, and Gohan felt something small and slightly damp hit him. He'd looked up to find a blonde-haired boy with brown eyes waving at him and smiling, but in a mean way. Gohan frowned, and the boy had whispered, "Nice clothes, you slob."

Gohan hadn't had much of a chance to say anything back, because the teacher had called out, "Avery Ratcliffe." The boy had raised his hand and smiled sweetly at the teacher, who'd introduced herself as Mrs. Teacher, to assorted giggles from the classroom.

Gohan decided to just ignore Avery, and when Mrs. Teacher had called his name, he'd raised his hand and said, "Here, Mrs. Teacher." He'd just put his hand down when he heard snickers coming from the table that Avery Ratcliffe was sitting at. He looked at the table to see Avery waving goofily while jumping up and down in his chair. It didn't take Gohan long to realize that Avery was making fun of him, and had blushed and hidden his head in his arms on the table he was sitting at. 'Why is he making fun of me?' Gohan wondered.

"Gohan, please pick your head up," Mrs. Teacher said gently. "It isn't naptime just yet." Renewed snickers came from Avery's table as Gohan hurriedly picked his head up and said, "Yes, Mrs. Teacher," in a soft voice.

The rest of Gohan's day had been filled with Avery Ratcliffe making fun of him in various ways. They ranged from smashing Gohan's Play-Doh into the floor, to making him spill his juice at snack time, to tripping him at every opportunity, to making loud farting noises and blaming it loudly on Gohan. Joining Avery in his antics were a brown-haired girl with green eyes named Michelle Belafonte, a redhead with hazel eyes named James Pickett, and a girl with black hair and blue eyes named Jenifyr Stone.

Another girl, another girl with black hair and blue eyes named Videl Filcure had watched what the group were doing to Gohan, he'd noticed. But Videl neither helped him nor helped them. She just watched. If anything, that made Gohan feel even worse, because, except for Videl, Jenifyr, Avery, Michelle, and James, everyone else ignored him. Gohan felt like he wasn't even worth helping, and started to wonder if it was something he'd done wrong.

All in all, it had been a very hard first day, and when the bell finally rang, Gohan grabbed his backpack from his cubby and had run out of the classroom and into the schoolyard before half the class had even gotten out of their seats.

Gohan wiped his eyes again as he started to look around, wondering where his dad was. 'He said he'd be here,' Gohan thought, and tears started to fall down his face again. 'Where's my Daddy? He said he'd be here…' Gohan was terrified at the thought of Avery and the others finding him out here. Yet, for some reason, he was even more scared of Videl finding him and just watching him with her eyes that were a clearer blue than Gohan's best crayon.

Just as Gohan heard a voice say, "Hey, slob!" he saw his dad walking up the street, headed for the gate. A sob escaped from Gohan's lips as he started to run toward his dad. The tears were flowing full force by the time Gohan got to his father, who picked him up.

"Well, hey, Gohan…Gohan? Gohan, what's wrong?" his dad asked, alarmed.

"Daddy…They w-were m-mean to me…and I don't even know w-why," Gohan said in between great heaving sobs. He buried his head into his dad's shoulder, and Goku decided to get Gohan home before he got any worse.

"Shh, Gohan, it's okay," Goku said, gently bouncing Gohan as he hugged him close, one arm under Gohan's butt and his other hand behind Gohan's head. He turned and started to walk away, gently shushing Gohan's sobs and murmuring comforting nonsense words to him the entire walk home.

"At least you've still got me, right, Gohan?" he asked as they got to their front door. He smiled as he felt Gohan nod against his shoulder and his sobs subside.

"I love you, Gohan."

"I love you too, Daddy."

-TBC-

**A/N II: **Well, what do you think? I've already got the next chapter partly written, but since it is now a quarter to two in the morning where I live, I'm going to bed. Anyway, read and review, please. :D

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	2. Seven Years Have Gone So Fast

**A/N:** This is the actual Chapter One. It's a fast forward to Gohan's first day of seventh grade. A number of things happened in those seven years between the prologue and this chapter, but they'll be talked about in the chapters to come, so it won't really matter. Anyway, it's Gohan's first day...again. Anyone think this one will go better than his first day of kindergarten? ...I'll wait until you read the chapter to decide that for yourself.

This won't cover the entire first day of seventh grade, because there are still some things I want to get in. Namely: Gohan's tennis tryouts, his first martial arts club meeting, and an encounter with Videl. That would make the chapter too long, though. Also, I need to get some sleep for school, because my AP Government/Politics test is tomorrow. :D;;; Wish me luck, I guess, if you want.

Also, I took a bit of license with Gohan's last name. I really just added two letters to it. Since it's A/U and a fanfiction, I'm assuming I'm allowed to do that. *shrug*

The title is part of a lyric from "When September Ends" by Green Day.

**Disclaimer: **The fun about this sentence is that you don't realize it doesn't say anything until you've finished reading it. Also, I don't own Goku, ChiChi, Gohan, and Videl. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, and Jenifyr Stone are mine, and any similarities between them and another character you may have found in another fanfiction, names or behavior, are entirely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 1 - Seven Years Have Gone So Fast**

'Why do I feel such a bad sense of déjà vu?' Gohan thought as he adjusted the strap of his messenger bag. Maybe it was because he was entering someplace totally new, except this time instead of kindergarten, it was seventh grade. Maybe it was because his father was walking him to school like he had in kindergarten. Maybe it was that sense of nervousness that pervaded his being, except this time, he had many more reasons to believe that his nervousness was necessary. Also, this time, the thought of his father's hugs wasn't enough to keep the bad feelings at bay.

"I'll be here waiting for you after school, Gohan," his father said, and Gohan nodded. It had become a custom of sorts, since Gohan's first day of kindergarten had turned out so unhappily. The first day of every school year, Goku would walk Gohan to and from school. As Gohan's teasers had gotten older, their taunts had gotten more and more outrageous in regards to Gohan and his dad, but it was nothing Gohan thought about too deeply.

He'd developed this sort of mindset that he called "The Fog". Once he went into it, only he could bring himself back out again, no matter what Avery, Jenifyr, James, or Michelle did. That was the main reason he'd developed it, of course. He'd learned that nothing he did would ever make them stop, so he would just have to roll with it.

"Have a good day, Gohan," his father said, and Gohan gave another nod as he hugged his father briefly. Then with a backward wave of his hand, Gohan had vanished in a sea of students.

Gohan hadn't even been in the main building two minutes before he felt someone shove him hard enough to make him stumble sideways, and heard giggles and a snicker. He looked up and found Avery Ratcliffe standing in front of him, arms crossed, a smirk firmly in place on his prematurely squared features. "Hey, slob, did you say goodbye to your daddy before you came to big kid school?" Avery asked, to another set of giggles and snickers.

Gohan slipped into The Fog and straightened himself to his full twelve-year-old height. He was actually rather tall for his age, something he got from his dad. He also had a thick frame, though he was still a bit thinner than was average for someone of his age and size. However, no one saw his full height or build that often, since he spent so much time walking with his shoulders hunched and bent over. Acting as though he were trying to make himself as small as possible.

"Hey, slob, I'm talking to you," Avery said, shoving Gohan in the shoulders. Gohan was in The Fog, though, so he didn't react. He just moved past Avery Ratcliffe and started walking toward the Hub, a circular room in the middle of the school with hallways branching off in all four directions.

Orange Star Junior High School was set up around a central Hub. Extending from it were four corridors. To the south laid the English corridor, where all the different English teachers were. To the north was the Science wing, which only had three classrooms. However, the science classes were set up in blocks, and each lab had a pull-out wall to separate the desks from the lab stations; first half of the block was the classroom time, and the second half was dedicated to laboratory activities, and were rotated. To the east of the Hub was the Math hallway, and to the west was the Social Studies section of the school.

A smaller hallway branched off from the Social Studies wing; that was the Fine Arts hallway, where the visual and performing arts classes were held. Off of the English wing there was a small cul-de-sac-like area that was designated as the Foreign Languages section. Gohan hadn't bothered to sign up for any of the Fine Arts classes when doing scheduling near the end of sixth grade. He'd heard the Trouble Force Four (his own private nickname for Avery, Jenifyr, Michelle, and James) discussing taking some of those classes since they were supposed to be easy A's.

Gohan wouldn't have taken an easy class anyway; his mother would never permit it, and it would just give her something else to use against him. Gohan still didn't know why she seemed to yell at him so much, but, like he did with the TFF, he just went into The Fog whenever she started on him.

Gohan ignored Avery's calls after him and got into line at the proper table for Incoming Seventh Graders, Last Name R-Z. He got his schedule handed to him by a smiling girl not much older than he was. He returned the smile vaguely, still immersed in The Fog, and looked at his schedule. Apparently, his homeroom would be with Mr. Dolby, in the Science wing.

He headed for the science wing and opened the first door he came to, and walked in. The room was empty except for a slightly balding man with white hair sitting at the desk in front of the class. At Gohan's entrance, the man smiled, stood, and walked across the classroom, hand outstretched. Gohan managed to pull himself out of The Fog in time to hear the man say, "I'm Mr. Dolby. I'm assuming you're in my homeroom?"

Gohan managed a smile and said, "Yes, Mr. Dolby. My name is Gohan."

"Do you have a last name, Gohan?" Mr. Dolby asked with a smile as he shook Gohan's hand. Gohan quickly decided he liked this man; he was friendly and warm.

"My last name is S…"

"Slob!" a voice Gohan recognized as James Pickett's, and Gohan sighed.

Mr. Dolby raised an eyebrow and looked from Gohan to James, then consulted a list attached to a clipboard that he'd brought with him. "Hmm, would you mind telling me your name, young man?" he asked James. "I don't believe I have anyone registered in my homeroom as Inconsiderately Insulting."

Gohan covered his smile with a hand as James narrowed his eyes at Mr. Dolby. Mr. Dolby smiled serenely and turned to greet the influx of students entering his classroom. As he did so, James turned to Gohan and said, "You'd better wipe that smile off your face, slob, if you know what's good for you."

Gohan immediately sobered, and moved as far away from James as possible, picking a desk that was close to Mr. Dolby's desk. Until the tardy bell rang, Gohan studiously ignored James's threatening glances. Then, once the bell rang, Mr. Dolby cleared his throat, and said, "Now, as your homeroom teacher, I have a few extra responsibilities. Not only is it my responsibility to make sure that all of you are actually here, but I also have to let you know about any activities available through the school and outside of it.

"To that end, I have here a list of possible sports that can be joined. Among some of the choices available are football, basketball, volleyball, tennis, badminton, wrestling, soccer, baseball, and, for the ladies mostly, cheer, although guys can join it, too." At this, assorted snickers rose up among the students, which Mr. Dolby ignored as he continued. "Also, we have gymnastics, and finally, we also have a martial arts club, where the adviser teaches a style of martial arts she developed herself.

"And that wraps up the sports that Orange Star Junior High offers. A lot of the sports here are also offered at the high school, so it might be good to join these if you plan to play any of those sports in high school."

"We're almost out of time now," Mr. Dolby said, checking his watch. "If any of you are interested in any of these sports, I have sign-up sheets for tryouts and a list of coaches." He pulled a sheaf of papers off of his clipboard and laid them in piles. "Feel free to sign up for however many sports you feel that you can participate in."

A mass of students stood up, a large number of them solely interested in joining the football team. A fair number were at each of the others as well, and Gohan stood up slowly, moving towards the groups of people lethargically. The first piece of paper that Gohan picked up happened to have the names of the coaches on it. He was mildly interested in sports, since his father seemed to be. According to Goku, he'd once been the star of his high school tennis team.

'Tennis sounds like an interesting game,' Gohan thought, and perused the list to see who the coach was. He found it and smiled. The tennis coach was none other than Mr. Dolby. 'And that signs my deal,' Gohan thought as he signed his name down on the tennis sheet. He saw that he was the eighth person to sign the paper, which surprised him. He hadn't thought tennis would be so popular. He'd just started to scan the list when…

"Surprising that so many people signed up for tennis, isn't it?" Mr. Dolby asked him, making Gohan jump. "Oops, sorry, didn't mean to startle you."

"No, that's fine," Gohan replied with a small smile. Internally, he was thinking, 'Maybe I should sign up for that martial arts club, as well. Then at least I'd be able to stand up to the Trouble Force Four. And I wouldn't be startled so easily.'

Mr. Dolby smiled in return and said, "Anyway, people who sign up for the tennis team usually have some sort of family connection. Is that the case with you?"

"Yes, sir. My father told me that he was the star of his high school's tennis team."

"Is that so? Well, that's good. What's your father's name?"

"My father's name is Goku. Goku Sondë." There was a gasp from the students that had come ambling over, and Mr. Dolby's eyes disappeared into his receding hairline.

"Your father is Goku Sondë?" Mr. Dolby asked, and Gohan gave a wary nod. "Well then," Mr. Dolby said. "I'll be expecting great things from you, Gohan. With any luck you'll have inherited your father's genes."

Gohan smiled, but a voice cut in, "Oh **please**. I think he's lying; there's no way his father is Goku Sondë, the number-one tennis player at Orange Star High." It was James, and Gohan felt a pang of fright. 'Why can't he just let me be?' he wondered. 'What did I ever do to James Pickett? Or any of them, for that matter?'

"Mr…Pickett, is it?" Mr. Dolby said, and James nodded. "Very well. Keep harassing Mr. Sondë, and you'll start off the year with a detention. Am I clear?" James's eyes flashed, and Gohan could see the gears turning behind them as James gave a nod. He then sent a cool glance to Gohan that made him flinch. That gaze said, "Have to have your teachers stand up for you? Are you really **that pathetic**?"

Gohan put down the tennis sheet without seeing who else's name was on it, and stared at James from through The Fog until James turned and signed his name on another list. Just then, the bell rang, and Gohan picked up his things from his desk before walking past the lists again. He stopped at the one for the martial arts club and saw that only four other people had signed up for it. He took out his pen and signed his name on that as well, and looked up to see Mr. Dolby smiling at him. Gohan smiled back and hurriedly left the room, eager to try and blend into the masses of students.

He consulted his schedule and saw that his first period class was Spanish. He smiled. He was fairly sure that James, Michelle, Avery, and Jenifyr wouldn't go anywhere near those classes. He saw that his teacher's name was Sra. Filcure, and gave a start. 'That's Videl's mother,' he realized, and closed his eyes. That would mean that Videl would probably be in that class as well.

He was both relieved and slightly disappointed when he walked into the classroom to find a woman standing there smiling, and Videl nowhere in sight. "Buenos dias, ¿puedo mirar tu horario?" (1) she said, and Gohan scratched his head before looking at his schedule. He pointed to it, and Sra. Filcure smiled and nodded, saying, "Sí, es tu horario, ¿verdad?" (2)

Gohan honestly hadn't the slightest idea what she was saying, but assumed from her nod that she wanted to look at his schedule. 'Probably to verify that I'm supposed to be here this period,' he thought, handing her the schedule. She looked it for a second before smiling at him. "You're Gohan Sondë?"

"Yes, ma'am," Gohan replied, taken aback by her sudden reversion to English.

"My daughter's told me about you," Sra. Filcure said, handing Gohan his schedule back. "She says you're quiet, mostly."

'Videl's told her mother about me?' Gohan thought, before he replied, "That's flattering, ma'am. I don't talk much, that's for sure. I just don't have much to say, because someone else usually says it first."

'That or the Trouble Force Four spends the whole time glaring at me,' Gohan thought, but didn't say. "Is Videl in this class, ma'am?"

"Please, call me Señora Filcure, or just Señora," Sra. Filcure replied with another smile. Maybe it was just Gohan, but all these smiles the teachers had been giving him scared him slightly. Like there was something hidden behind them. Gohan shook it from his thoughts as Sra. Filcure continued. "And no, Videl decided that to have a parent as a teacher would be too awkward. So she opted for French instead." Sra. Wrinkled her nose slightly, and would've said more, but it was then that other students started trickling through the door.

"Por favor, siéntate dónde te prefieres," (3) she said, throwing Gohan off by her sudden switch back to Spanish, and then she was off greeting the incoming students. Gohan gave a small shrug and picked a seat in a corner, away from the center of the classroom.

When all the students had entered the classroom and the bell had rung, Sra. Filcure walked to the front of the class and said, "Bienvenidos a la clase de español. Me llamo Señora Filcure, y espero que ustedes aprendan a hablar español tan facilmente como yo, o un poco." (4)

Silence followed this speech, and Sra. said, "Now who can tell me what I just said?" For a minute or so, there was no response, and then a hand raised timidly. "Yes, señorita?" Sra. Filcure said with a smile.

"Umm…was it something like 'Welcome at the class of Spanish. My name is Mrs. Filcure, and…'" the girl trailed off, looking faintly embarrassed.

Sra. Filcure smiled and said, "That's good, so far. Tell you what." She turned around and wrote what she'd said on the whiteboard. When she'd finished, she turned back around and said, "Now, if anyone can fully and accurately translate this, they will get extra credit." There were excited whisperings at the mention of extra credit, because what kind of a teacher would give extra credit chances at the very beginning of the year?

"Ahora, chicos y chicas. Atención, por favor," (5) Sra. Filcure said, snapping her fingers above her head. Eventually the students quieted, and class began. 'This could be fun,' Gohan thought as he bent over his Spanish notebook to write down Sra. Filcure's message down. 'This could be fun indeed.'

The rest of the morning went by uneventfully, largely due to the fact that Gohan didn't have any of the TFF in his morning classes. However, Videl was in his social studies class, although she ended up on the opposite end of the classroom, since the teacher sat the students alphabetically.

His day remained trouble-free until lunch. Gohan walked into the cafeteria and found it set up much differently from the elementary school, where the tables had been set up in sections of tables three long and two wide, with the benches on the tables' opposite sides folded down. Here, the tables were circular with four chairs seated around it. Gohan could easily see which tables belonged to which groups, and could see where he would have to sit just as easily, judging from the looks various tables were giving him: on his own. He got his lunch from the lunch line, and as he was headed toward a table off in the corner that was unoccupied, he happened to walk past the table where Avery, Michelle, James, and Jenifyr were sitting.

Neither Avery nor James were sitting in a position to bother Gohan, so Gohan didn't concern himself with them. As such, he missed Avery leaning across the table toward Michelle and whispering something to her. He missed her nod, and so he was caught completely off-guard when she pushed her chair away from the table…straight into his path.

He tripped over the leg of her chair and watched in horror as the contents of his lunch tray slid off his tray and straight onto Michelle. He stumbled backward as she screeched in disgust and stood up. "Michelle, I'm so sorry…" he began, but didn't get much farther before Michelle was in his face.

"Look what you did, you slob! Can't you watch where you're going?!" she demanded of him, shoving him even further backward. He tripped over his feet and ended up spinning and slamming his hands into someone's lunch. The person had happened to have gotten soup today, and Gohan retracted his hand as quickly as he could, yet still not fast enough to prevent himself from burning the hand that had gone into the soup.

He blew on his hand as the person whose lunch he'd ruined stood slowly, seeming to tower over Gohan. In reality, he was only about half a head taller than Gohan, but Gohan had his head down, focused on his hand, and as such, couldn't tell.

"You ruined my lunch!" a voice said, and Gohan's attention got taken away from his burned hand when a fist connected with the side of his face. He felt a molar in the back of his mouth get separated from his gum, and spat it out into his hand with a few drops of blood. He could feel the side of his face bruising and looked up straight into another fist.

This one plowed into his nose, snapping his head back. He brought his head back down and could feel something warm flowing from his nostrils. He did his best to retreat into The Fog, and succeeded. He'd gone into it so quickly he couldn't hear the demands made of him by the person who'd punched him, couldn't hear the laughter of the kids around him, couldn't feel the tears starting to leak down his still stinging face.

He turned around and found himself face-to-face with a familiar teacher…but he couldn't place her name. "Come on, Gohan, let's get you to the nurse," the teacher said, and Gohan vaguely realized that it was Sra. Filcure who was leading him by the arm out of the cafeteria.

-TBC-

**A/N II: **Poor Gohan. Oh well. It won't get any easier for a while. Anyway, read and review, please. :D

Also, Gohan's last name is pronounced like "SOHN-duh".

Translations:  
(1) - "Good morning, may I look at your schedule?"  
(2) - "Yes, that's your schedule, true?"  
(3) - "Please, Gohan, sit down where you prefer."  
(4) - "Welcome to Spanish class. My name is Mrs. Filcure, and I hope that you all will learn to speak Spanish as easily as I, or a little."  
(5) - "Now, boys and girls. Attention, please."

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	3. And If We Just Stay Strong

**A/N: ***goes to find it*

_"This is A/U. They're all normal. Well, normal in that none of them are aliens and the Earth isn't in constant danger...Goku, ChiChi, Gohan, and Videl will all be rather OOC, but that's because this stays far away from any sort of Dragon World canon, except that Gohan and Videl do eventually get together. If A/U fanfictions aren't your thing, please don't read this and then give me bad reviews. I'm not interested, particularly if I'm giving you warning here and now."_

Now then. I do believe that that was warning enough for anyone who chose to read this fanfiction. And yet, so far, out of eight reviewers, I have gotten **three** that have felt the need to point out to me that my fanfiction does not fit the canon and that the only thing connecting it to Dragon Ball Z are the names of the characters.

Three words: **I. Am. Aware. **

I had a large rant all planned out, but I've decided that it isn't worth it. So I'll say this: I am entirely aware that this is A/U.

Obviously, those who felt the need to point that out and then tell me that I would upset Dragon Ball Z fans on the site have never read **other** A/U Dragon Ball Z fanfictions that have gotten **hundreds** of reviews, and grew to be quite popular. Do me a favor, those of you that left me those reviews (you know who you are), and read those. Don't **bash** my fanfiction because it doesn't fit into the canon like a hand into a glove. I will not tolerate that, particularly when **I gave you ample warning beforehand**.

These reviews I got highly upset me. Not because they weren't glowing with praise, no, that isn't it. What irritates me is that the **one** thing that those reviewers chose to point out (all three of them, by the way) was the **one** thing I warned specifically against bringing to my attention, because I intended it to be this way when I started to write the story.

Kindly do not remind me of these things again. Thank you.

Now then, on with the story. However, before I do, I would like to thank those reviewers who either left me nice reviews or brought up legitimate concerns and suggestions. I appreciate them all, and actually intend to implement one of the ideas a reviewer was so kind to give me. So thank you again, and now we can get on with the story.

The title is part of a lyric from "Light the Fire Within" by LeAnn Rimes.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Any unrecognizable characters, the Trouble Force Four, and all their relations are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 2 - And If We Just Stay Strong**

"Well, young man, you certainly picked the best day to get to know me," the school nurse, a woman with long blonde hair that she kept in a bun said with a smile. "It's only the first day, so people don't usually get a chance to get hurt badly enough to need to come and see me. Now why don't you tell me how you ended up with a bruised jaw, a bloody nose, and a tooth knocked out?"

Gohan didn't reply; he wasn't sure that he wanted to. The nurse frowned and said, "I can't help you unless I know what happened, you know." She looked to Señora Filcure, who gave a light shrug and shook her head. Letting out a small sigh at Gohan's continued silence, the nurse said, "Well, I suppose that we'll have to take small steps."

Gohan looked up in spite of himself and saw the nurse with a patient expression on her face. An expression that said that she dealt with children like Gohan a lot. "Well, young man, can you tell me your name?"

"…Gohan."

"Gohan," the nurse said with a pleasant smile. "My name is Nurse Rose. It's nice to meet you." She held out her hand, and Gohan looked at it for a while. Her hand didn't move, although the smile faded slightly from her face. Finally, Gohan found his hand moving to clasp hers. The smile returned full-force as she pumped his hand softly.

"How has your day been so far, Gohan?" Nurse Rose asked, and Gohan gave her a slightly incredulous look. She blushed slightly and said, "Sorry, sorry, dumb question. How about this, then: Why did you come to see me? I know that you didn't just come to chat with me, obviously."

"Señora Filcure brought me to see you," Gohan said quietly, though he could feel himself relaxing slightly, coming more and more out of The Fog.

"Did she now? And why did she do that? Was it because she wanted you to become a nurse when you grow up?"

Gohan's lip quirked in a half-smile. "No, I don't think so, Nurse Rose."

"You don't? Then why do you suppose she brought you here? For the pleasure of my company?"

"No, I don't think that's quite it, either," Gohan replied, a touch of sarcasm in his tone. Nurse Rose's eyes sparkled as she gave a half-smile of her own.

"Then why don't you tell me what you think?"

"I think that she brought me to see you because I got punched in the jaw and then again in the nose." Nurse Rose placed her face in her palm melodramatically, and Gohan's half-smile grew into something bigger than a half-smile but smaller than an actual smile.

"Well, I'm glad I'm not the only one who came to that conclusion," Nurse Rose said. "Now how did you manage to get punched in the jaw **and** the nose?"

"Because I put my hand in someone's soup."

"On **purpose**?" Nurse Rose asked, incredulous.

"No, not on **purpose**," Gohan replied, mimicking her tone exactly. "I was shoved."

"Shoved by who?"

"Shoved by…someone." Nurse Rose sighed. 'And here I thought we were making progress,' she thought ruefully.

"All right, so you were shoved and your hand ended up in someone's soup. And that someone punched you? Twice?"

Gohan nodded, albeit reluctantly. "Now why would they hit you twice for something that wasn't your fault?"

"I don't know," Gohan replied in a falsely pleasant voice. "Why don't you ask him?"

Nurse Rose frowned slightly, and the humor left her face and her tone. "I don't think I need to. He punched you because he's just like that, isn't he? Because he got frustrated at the fact that he didn't have a lunch any more, and you just happened to be there. Did you have your lunch?"

Gohan looked shocked at the question, but responded. "No, I didn't." 'Five points to me if she asks me why I didn't have my lunch,' he thought, and, sure enough…

"And why didn't you have your lunch?"

'There's five points,' Gohan thought as he replied. "Because, before I'd been shoved, I was knocked into and had spilled my lunch on the same person who later shoved me and made my hand go into the boy's lunch." Nurse Rose was nodding as though she'd expected this all along, and Gohan found himself thinking, 'If you knew all of that already, what was the point of making me tell you?'

"All right," Nurse Rose said. "Do you feel up to continuing through the rest of the day, or would you rather go home?"

"No!" Gohan said, a little too quickly, a little too emphatically. Nurse Rose raised an eyebrow, and Gohan went on to say, "I feel okay. My face feels a little numb, and it'll take a little bit to get the taste of blood out of my mouth, but I think my nose has already stopped bleeding." Sure enough, when Gohan raised a hand to his nose, it was still tender, but he couldn't feel any more blood leaking from it.

"See? If I can just get my face cleaned up, and my mouth washed out, then I should be okay to go," Gohan said, and Nurse Rose nodded, although she looked rather hesitant at letting Gohan go. "Really, Nurse Rose. Thank you for your concern, but I'll be all right. I'd really rather stay at school for my whole first day."

Nurse Rose still looked hesitant, but she nodded and led him to the bathroom. "There you go, Gohan," she said. "When you're ready to go, let me know, and I'll help you find your way to your next class."

"That's all right, Nurse Rose," Gohan said quickly. 'If I have to have the school **nurse** of all people escort me to class, Avery and the others will never let me hear the end of it.' He was by now firmly convinced that the rest of his classes would have at least one of the Trouble Force Four in them, because his morning had been remarkably trouble-free. "I can find my way around."

Nurse Rose frowned again, and said, "I'd feel much more comfortable if you had someone with you."

"Why?" Gohan asked innocently. "Do you think I'll be hit again?" The minute flinch from Nurse Rose was enough of an answer. "I need to learn to be able to look after myself," Gohan said. "Thank you, Nurse Rose. I appreciate it, I really do, but I can find my own way to class." Nurse Rose looked extremely dissatisfied, but in the end, she nodded her assent. She couldn't very well force Gohan to let her or someone else walk him to class. She remembered well how cruel children could be.

"All right," she said. "Get yourself cleaned up, and then you can go." Gohan nodded and went into the bathroom and cleaned himself off. He looked in the mirror at his bruised jaw and thought, 'Well, at least I can tell Dad that my first day was interesting, if nothing else.' The thought made him smile, then wince as it stretched the bruised part of his jaw.

When he'd finished, he walked out of the nurse's office with a small smile to Nurse Rose, who had gone to sit behind her desk. She returned the smile as Gohan left, but it slid off her face as soon as the door closed behind him. 'Why do I get the bad feeling I'm going to see a lot more of Gohan before the year is through?' she asked herself, then shook her head and went back to her paperwork.

Gohan, meanwhile, had found his next class, since it turned out to be rather close to the nurse's office. He looked at his schedule and then at the classroom number, and nodded. His next class was math. He let out a breath, and walked into the classroom.

"What is the square root of twenty-four? In radical form?"

"Two-radical-six," Gohan said out of reflex, before he could think about who'd asked him the question. The teacher, a severe-looking man with cropped grey hair nodded, appearing satisfied.

"Very good, Mr…?"

"Sondë. Gohan Sondë," Gohan replied, and the teacher nodded again.

"Pleasure to meet you, Gohan," the teacher said. "Now why are you late to my class?"

"He was in the nurse's office," a voice that sounded a lot like Michelle's said. Looking through the corner of his eye, Gohan barely managed to keep from groaning. Yep, it was Michelle. "Because he got sucker punched in the face. **Twice**." Gohan could almost hear the wicked grin stretching across her face.

"Thank you, Ms. Belafonte, although I do believe I had asked Gohan, and not you," the teacher replied, without taking his eyes off Gohan. The vicious grin turned into a pout on Michelle's face, and she sat back in her seat. "Now, Mr. Sondë, is what Ms. Belafonte says true?"

Gohan nodded, and the teacher nodded yet again. "Where should I sit, sir?" Gohan asked, and the teacher walked toward a desk and tapped his finger on it. Gohan nodded and made his way toward the desk, making sure to stay out from in between the aisles.

As he sat down, the teacher said, "And my name, as you can see on the board, is Mr. Dolby."

"Like the science teacher?" Gohan asked before he could stop himself, and Mr. Dolby nodded.

"He's my older brother, though we both started teaching here at the same time." That was all he said by way of explanation, and Gohan found himself wondering if he was actually anywhere near as pleasant as his brother was.

As Mr. Dolby walked back to the front of the class, Gohan looked around and found, joy of joys, that not only was Michelle in this class, but so were Jenifyr, Avery, and James. 'Lucky me,' Gohan thought, and then he spotted Videl again. 'She seems to be in every one of my classes,' he thought absently, before Mr. Dolby's voice snapped him back to attention.

"What is the greatest common factor of 12 and 24?"

"Six," Jenifyr promptly replied, and Mr. Dolby made no response except to look at Gohan.

"Mr. Sondë, since you correctly answered my last question, why don't you take a shot at this one as well?"

"I already said the answer," Jenifyr said loudly. "The answer is six."

"The answer is 12," Gohan replied softly, and Jenifyr glared at him, even as Mr. Dolby nodded approvingly.

"Correct again, Mr. Sondë. Well done." Gohan allowed himself another half-smile, even as Jenifyr glared at him, and Avery joined in. 'Let them glare,' Gohan thought. 'Just because they can terrorize me doesn't mean that they're perfect and know everything.'

The rest of the math lesson consisted of Mr. Dolby working out different problems on the board, and then picking students to answer questions like the one he'd done as an example. His system, as he explained it, was to allow the same student to answer questions as long as he or she continued to get the answers right.

Since Gohan had correctly answered those first two questions he'd asked him, Mr. Dolby continued to ask Gohan questions. Gohan continued to get them all correct. Avery and Jenifyr continued to glare at Gohan harder and harder. Finally, the bell rang, and Gohan got up to leave, when Mr. Dolby stopped him. "Mr. Sondë, do you have a minute before your next class?"

"I should, Mr. Dolby," Gohan replied. "I have gym class next period, so it shouldn't be a problem."

"Thank you," Mr. Dolby said. "If you don't mind me asking, Mr. Sondë - " he cut off and looked at Avery Ratcliffe and Jenifyr Stone, who were still standing there glaring at Gohan. "Mr. Ratcliffe, Ms. Stone, I'm sure you must have important classes to get to. Please leave." They complied, glaring at Gohan the entire way. "Now then, Mr. - "

"Mr. Dolby, it's all right if you just call me Gohan," Gohan cut across him, and Mr. Dolby regarded him silently for a few moments.

"Very well, Gohan," he said. "Now then, my brother tells me that you've decided to sign up for the tennis team?"

"Yes, sir, I have," Gohan replied, and Mr. Dolby looked immensely satisfied.

"I happen to be the assistant coach for the tennis team, so I shall see you at the end of the day, then," Mr. Dolby said, and Gohan smiled, managing to hide the wince.

"Can I go now, sir?" Mr. Dolby nodded, and Gohan left.

Gym class passed without much happening, since the Trouble Force Four were all too busy playing four-square to bother Gohan…mostly. He still had to dodge wayward balls every once in a while, but that was no issue. Finally, the bell rang, and the students left to go get changed and then leave. Those who hadn't signed up for sports or anything, that is.

Gohan, however, simply stayed in the gym until all the students had left. After they had, he just stood there, waiting. Soon enough, the Dolby brothers walked in in nearly identical outfits, and the seven people who'd signed up before him that morning were following the coaches.

"Gohan," the science Dolby said, and Gohan smiled.

"Mr. Dolby," he replied, then turned to the math Dolby. "Mr. Dolby."

Both Dolbys gave identical smirks, and the science Dolby said, "Gohan, when in practice, you can call me Coach, and my little brother prefers to be called Dolby."

Gohan nodded, then asked next, "Aren't there any eighth graders on the team?" Each Dolby shook his head.

"There was a lack of interest," Coach said. "Actually, if we'd had no one sign up this year, the tennis team would've been axed. So we're both extremely grateful to the eight of you." Gohan smiled, and noticed that most of the other seven did as well.

With that done, Coach introduced the team members to each other. Gohan tried to remember them all as Coach began, "Here we have…" The others said their names aloud, going in a line.

"Matt."

"Jack."

"Emily."

"Monica."

"Greg."

"Melissa."

"Amari."

"I'm Gohan," Gohan said, and nodded to each of them, repeating their names. He managed not to confuse anyone, and smiled. They all returned the smile, and the two coaches nodded, looking pleased.

"Now then, since the introductions are out of the way," Dolby said. "Let's see how well you can serve a tennis ball."

Gohan volunteered to go first, and ended up volunteering for a rally against Dolby. "No backing out now," Dolby said with a mock dark laugh. "Grab a racket, and let's get this started." Gohan nodded reluctantly, and went to take one from the rack. When he returned, Dolby tossed the ball up into the air, and smacked it none too gently.

It came right at Gohan's face, and out of reflex, Gohan moved to one side and caught the ball in a hard backhand, sending it bouncing right back over the net. Dolby hit it back again, and Gohan smacked it back again. Eventually, they got into a nice rally. The others began to cheer, and Coach watched, eyes following the ball back and forth.

Suddenly, Dolby gave it a hard smack, and it soared over the net. Gohan's arm arced back, then spiked downward. He caught the ball hard enough to send it skittering over the net and bouncing under Dolby's feet before he could stop it. Gohan gave a small smile as Coach said, "I think you might just have your father's talent after all."

Gohan didn't reply, only looked at the clock and said, "Coach, Dolby, can I leave now? I need to get to the meeting for the martial arts club." The coaches nodded, and Gohan nodded back before placing the racket back where he'd gotten it and running from the gym. 'I really did well at tennis,' he thought happily. 'Maybe this year won't be so bad after all.'

He got to the meeting room and found the instructor was the only one standing there. He paused, apprehension returning to him. "Did I miss it?"

The instructor nodded. Gohan winced and looked down. "I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I didn't mean to be so late. I was at the tennis tryouts, and Mr. Dolby, the math teacher, and I got into a rally."

"Did he win?" the instructor asked, and Gohan looked up.

"No, ma'am. I did," Gohan replied, and felt a bit of the pride and happiness return. "I hit it too low and too fast for him to catch."

"Well done," the instructor said. "Now then, I assume that, since you still came, regardless of the time, that you intended to join the martial arts club?"

"Yes, ma'am, if it isn't too late," Gohan said quickly, and the woman tilted her head to one side.

"I suppose not," the instructor said finally, and gave Gohan a small smile. "Your name, please?"

"Gohan. Gohan Sondë." He didn't miss the slightly raised eyebrow that the instructor gave him.

"Sondë? You wouldn't happen to be the son of Goku Sondë, would you?"

"Yes, ma'am, that I would," Gohan replied with a nod. The instructor watched him speculatively, and Gohan willed himself not to fidget. Eventually, she nodded and wrote his name down.

"Well, Gohan-kun, I suppose that you can still join. We didn't really do much besides get to know each other, anyway."

"Thank you, ma'am," Gohan said.

"Gohan-kun, if you're going to be in this club, you should address me properly. I would like you to call me Mariya-sensei."

"Yes, ma'am - er, Mariya-sensei," Gohan replied, and Mariya gave a small smile. She seemed to be fond of those, Gohan noted. Now that he studied her, she looked rather familiar, as well. Suddenly, Gohan knew where he'd seen her eyes before. Her hair.

"Mariya-sensei, your last name wouldn't happen to be Stone, would it?" Gohan asked quietly, and Mariya tilted her head to one side. "I know your daughter…Jenifyr."

Comprehension dawned in her eyes. "You mean you're **that** Gohan?" Gohan looked at her, slightly confused. "Jenifyr tells me about you, sometimes," Mariya continued, not seeming to see Gohan's tiny flinch. "Well, now that I know who you are, things will go much more smoothly," Mariya said next.

"What do you mean, Mariya-sensei?" Gohan asked, and Mariya shook her head.

"Nothing, Gohan-kun. If you don't have any questions, you're free to go."

"Actually, I have a couple of questions."

"Then ask them, if you would."

"Who else is in the club?"

"Let me see." She checked her list. "Matthew Jasso-Helod, Emily Morgane, Gregory Yalert, and Videl Filcure." Gohan worked to conceal his surprise, then reminded himself that he probably shouldn't have expected any less. "Your other question? Or questions?" Mariya asked, and Gohan snapped himself out of his thoughts.

"Actually, the second question I just realized isn't important. Thank you, Mariya-sensei, but I really need to go." He gave a small half-bow, and waited for Mariya to nod before he turned and left.

He walked straight into Videl Filcure.

He stumbled away from her, terrified that she might attack him or something. But she didn't. She only fixed him in that fathoms-deep stare. Finally, he managed to murmur an apology. "Sorry, Videl," he said quietly. "I wasn't watching where I was going."

"Neither was I," Videl replied. "So I guess I should I'm sorry, too." Gohan didn't respond. "So…I'm sorry."

Gohan nodded, and then carefully picked his way around her. He still didn't know why she unsettled him so badly, that Videl Filcure. But she did. Hopefully that would change with them both being in the martial arts club.

-TBC-

**A/N II: **And there you have it. I honestly couldn't write any more of this fanfiction, because every time I started, I'd get angry and have to go do something else. Then, by the time I got over it, I was busy as my senior year of high school ran into the home stretch. However, I am now finished with school, and plan to update this fanfiction much more frequently. For those of you who read MagicKi, I won't be starting Battle for Namek until I finish this and the Fire Emblem fanfiction I'm working on. Neither of them should be that long, so if you can just hold out for that long, I promise you won't be disappointed.

Anyway, review, please. :D

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	4. The Dust Has Only Just Begun To Fall

**A/N: **And here's the next chapter. You'd be surprised how productive I can be when I put my mind to it.

In any case, I am now completely calm, and I have a clear idea of where I want this to go. Hopefully those of you who like the story will follow me through to the end of it. It'll be a very bittersweet ending; I can tell you that much for sure. Anyway, here's the new chapter, hot off the press. Also, I'd like to thank **chimney leaf** for your review. It made me laugh helplessly, and effectively vaporized my bad mood. So, thank you. I really needed to laugh. Also, I thank you for your support. It means a lot. :)

Anyway (again), enjoy...Or, at least, I hope you will. Just remember, as you're reading the chapter: What goes up, must come down, and vice versa.

The title is part of a lyric from "Hide and Seek" by Imogen Heap.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Any unrecognizable characters, the Trouble Force Four, and all their relations are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 3 - The Dust Has Only Just Begun To Fall**

Gohan walked outside and found his father standing there waiting for him. He kept his head down, as he didn't want his dad to see the bruise just yet. Unfortunately, keeping it hidden wasn't an option.

"Where were you, Gohan?" Goku asked softly as he hugged his son. "I saw the Snotty Squad leave, and then you didn't immediately follow. I was a little worried."

"Sorry, Daddy," Gohan said, slipping into his childhood term for his father. He also smiled slightly at the name Goku had devised for the Trouble Force Four. "I signed up for the tennis team and the martial arts club, and had to go to those meetings. That's why I took so long. Sorry, I didn't mean to worry you."

"No, don't sweat it," Goku said, shaking his head. "I'm proud of you for signing up for those."

"Actually, I seemed to shock a lot of people when they realized you were my dad," Gohan said, and could feel Goku shaking as he laughed. "Pickett said that there was no way that I could be your son," he continued softly, and Goku immediately stiffened, all laughter gone.

"Gohan, I cannot think of anyone I'd rather have be my son than you. You already are my son, and you'll always be my son, whether Pickett believes that or not." His embrace tightened until it pained Gohan slightly, and he let out a small gasp. "Sorry, son," Goku said as his hug loosened abruptly.

"It's fine, Daddy," Gohan said, turning his head up to look at Goku, forgetting about the bruise on his face. That is, until Goku's eyes widened.

"Gohan, what happened to you today?" he murmured as they started to walk home.

"Belafonte tripped me, and then pushed me so that my hand fell into someone's soup and knocked it over. He punched me in the jaw, and then again in the nose. But I went to the nurse, and she got the bleeding to stop and the bruise never swelled that much."

He could tell by the way Goku was shaking his head that he was barely listening. "Gohan, this can't happen to you. Not again." Gohan looked down as the memories of minor beatings he'd gotten from Avery and James in elementary school ran through his head. It had started in fourth grade, and they'd always done it during recess or lunch so that they could pass it off as though Gohan had tripped and hurt himself. It only gave them more incentive to call him a clumsy slob.

He didn't reply to his father, and they walked in silence the rest of the way home. 'I know he loves me, my Daddy, but he just doesn't get it,' Gohan thought sadly. 'Unless I move, they'll never leave me alone. I'll get no rest. It started in elementary school, it started again now, and it'll start again once we get to high school.'

The next day, Gohan walked into Mr. Dolby's homeroom, only to narrowly dodge a pencil thrown at his head. He didn't have to look to know that it came from James. Luckily, a distraction from James came in the form of Mr. Dolby, who handed him a packet of papers. "What are these, Mr. Dolby?" Gohan asked curiously as he leafed through the packet.

"That's the team schedule," Mr. Dolby replied. "I didn't get a chance to give one to you yesterday, because you'd left. Actually, our first game is tomorrow, against East City Middle School. Because of that, our practice today will be much longer than it was yesterday. I'll expect you to show up and stay for the duration."

"Yes, Mr. Dolby," Gohan said. "I don't know when Mariya-sensei holds meetings - "

"Every other day," Mr. Dolby said, and Gohan visibly relaxed. Mr. Dolby smiled at him. "I talked with Mrs. Stone. She agreed that it would be best if our schedules revolved around each other's, since nearly the entire martial arts club is also on the tennis team. So you won't need to worry about clashing schedules, for the most part."

"Thank you, Mr. Dolby," Gohan said, and Mr. Dolby simply smiled.

"Tomorrow, we leave for the match at around 1:15. We don't leave for the match until 3:45 during the school week, and since school lets out at 2:45, and the martial arts club meeting starts at 2:50 and will last about 45 minutes…"

"That'll leave me with ten minutes yet to join up with the team," Gohan finished, and Mr. Dolby nodded. Then, the bell rang, and Gohan took his seat. He'd never found it so easy to ignore James Pickett before.

The rest of the day passed without much incident. No one had yet managed to figure out what the message on Señora's whiteboard said, though that wasn't really much of a surprise, since it was only the second day of school.

Lunch was, surprisingly, an okay affair, and there were no trippings, nor were any punches thrown or trips to the infirmary made. This was mostly because, as Gohan was walking through the cafeteria, just as he was about to pass the Trouble Force Four's table, a voice called out, "Gohan! Gohan, over here!" Gohan stopped and looked for the source of the voice, and found Matt standing and waving to him.

He walked over, and Matt gestured for him to sit down. "We figured you may want to sit with some of your teammates and clubmates," he said with a smile that Gohan returned.

"Thanks, Matt," Gohan said, and Matt waved a hand as Gohan sat down.

"Don't mention it. Now then, since you left before the tryouts were actually over yesterday, you missed what the coaches had to say."

"Which is what?" Gohan asked.

"Well, we need a captain, and a co-captain," Matt said. "So that we have someone to be our face when we go up against other teams. I was voted co-captain - "

"I missed the announcement **and **the vote?" Gohan asked incredulously, and Matt laughed.

"You only missed the vote for co-captain, since the prime candidate that we'd decided we wanted to be our captain was already gone," Matt replied with a grin.

Gohan didn't get it. "Who was the candidate?"

"You were, Gohan," Jack cut in, and Gohan choked as he looked at him.

"Me?" he asked faintly. "You're joking."

"Not in the slightest," Matt said, shaking his head. "You and I were the only ones who could rally against Dolby. And of the two of us, you know as well as I do who actually managed to **beat **him."

"But…I'm no good at being a leader…of **anyone**," Gohan said, and Matt shrugged.

"Neither are we, Gohan. But we picked who we thought would be the best choice for captain based on ability. And you've got the most of that among us."

Gohan sighed. "Thanks, Matt, Jack. I appreciate it, but…I don't feel comfortable with it. I don't think I'd make a very good captain."

"Well, of course not," Jack said dismissively. Gohan must have looked particularly wounded at that remark, because Jack winced and said, "Sorry. What I meant was that of course you won't be a good captain…right now. No one is born knowing how to be in a position of authority."

'Avery Ratcliffe would probably disagree,' Gohan thought but did not say.

"Anyway, Gohan, you'll need to grow used to being captain, just like Matt will have to get used to be co-captain," Jack continued. "Shying away from what people think you'd be worthy to undertake won't help you get any better at shouldering responsibilities. Often, the responsibilities we wear best are the ones we have thrust upon us, rather than the ones we take upon ourselves."

Gohan couldn't think of a good reply to that, not without sounding like exactly what the Trouble Force Four claimed he was on a constant basis. Therefore, he could only nod and say, "We'll see how I do." That was enough, however, as Matt's face broke into a grin.

It vanished quickly, however, when he looked past Gohan and saw someone coming. Gohan tensed; he had a good idea of who it was.

"What's this I hear? Gohan the Clumsy Slob is a **captain**?!" Avery said loudly. Loud enough so that he caught everyone's attention. "What did you do to get that sort of clout with the coaches? On second thought, do I even **want **to know?" He gave a melodramatic shudder, and most of the cafeteria laughed.

Gohan hunched over, trying to contain the sudden impulse to stand and sock Avery Ratcliffe in the face so hard he'd knock him into next month. Instead, he remained stiff, unmoving. "Can't even talk for yourself, can you?" Avery taunted, a leering grin on his face. "Idiot slob…I bet you aren't even really a captain."

"Speak for yourself," Gohan said suddenly, unable to take it any more. Avery got deadly quiet, and when he next spoke, he was almost inaudible.

"What did you say, slob?"

"I said, 'speak for yourself'," Gohan repeated. "What does it matter if I'm a captain? Why do you care? Is it because you can't use your 'popularity' to get you a captaincy? Can't even throw a football? Can't even - " he was cut off by a cuff to the back of his head hard enough to make him lose his sight for a second.

"Watch what you say, slob," Avery said, still in that deathly quiet voice. "Don't you dare try to pull that high and mighty **shit** with me. You're a slob, and a klutz, and you'll never amount to **anything** in this world. What a waste of space." With that, he turned and walked away slowly.

Gohan remained tensed and hunched over until Avery was far enough away. Then, he relaxed, and forced down the urge to cry. "Gohan, you did something really awesome just now," Matt said.

Gohan shot a furious look at him. "What? I nearly got knocked unconscious by Avery Ratcliffe? Congratulations to me, yay, I'm so **amazing**!" He practically hissed the last word, and Matt moved away from him slightly.

"Gohan, that wasn't what he was talking about," Jack said as the noise in the cafeteria began to build up again. "He was talking about the fact that you stood up to Avery Ratcliffe. I don't know him, so I don't know what kind of a reputation he has." Gohan looked at him incredulously, and he shrugged. "I'm new. Anyway, it's obvious that he's used to complete and utter submission from you. The fact that you chose not to do that this time means something. How much do you want to bet that people right now are talking about how you stood up to him?"

"Yeah, and debating whether or not I actually **earned **the Captaincy, or are letting their minds go wild with imaginary scenarios," Gohan muttered, and Jack sighed loudly.

"Look, Gohan, you're going to prove them wrong come the match tomorrow. Those are always televised on the local sports channel. You're an exceptional tennis player, Gohan. And people knew your father, and what a danger he was on the court."

"How do you know that stuff?" Gohan asked. "I thought you were new."

"It's called newspapers," Jack replied without missing a beat. "The point is, I bet Avery doesn't have the football captaincy, and he wanted to make you feel inferior because you got something he didn't. Bullies are always the insecure ones, Gohan. Never the bullied."

Gohan eyed Jack with a mixture of wariness and awe. "Jack, you're really scary sometimes, you know?" he asked, and Jack gave a solemn smile.

"My mom says I've got an old soul, and that's why I know the things I do," he replied, and Gohan contemplated that. 'It wouldn't be impossible,' he thought. 'I can't say that I know anything about souls and what they do when we die.'

Just then, the bell rang, and Jack, Gohan, and Matt stood up and headed to Mr. Dolby's math class.

The day passed in relative peace, though Gohan could feel the tension and animosity coming from Avery, Jenifyr, Michelle, and James. 'I wonder what they have planned for me today,' he thought wryly, and found that he couldn't bring himself to care very much. He had friends now, and he was a **captain**. And Avery **wasn't**. That very knowledge seemed to fill Gohan with a confidence he didn't know he'd had.

And people noticed, too. They would do double-takes at him as he walked past in the hall, looking straight ahead, rather than at the ground. They whispered to each other about what they thought could've caused such a drastic change in Gohan, even if they didn't know him by name or because of the things the Trouble Force Four - or the Snotty Squad, a nickname which Gohan was coming to like more and more the more he thought about it - spread around about him.

"Did you see that kid?"

"Why does he look like that?"

"I don't know, he didn't look like that yesterday. Yesterday, he was just another scared, useless kid."

"Why's today so different?" It was mere curiosity, nothing more…for the most part. However, on the part of the Snotty Squad, it was suspicion, and an excuse to plot revenge for embarrassing Avery like Gohan had during lunch today.

Nevertheless, Gohan got through the rest of the day without too much trouble. He wasn't sure whether that was because of him himself, or because of the way Matt, Jack, and even Greg and Amari had taken to gathering around him as a sort of shield. They were inconspicuous about it, of course, and made it seem like they were just a group of friends. Or teammates. Teammates that stuck together and protected one another.

Gohan had to smile at the thought.

Finally, tennis practice came around, and Gohan, again, was the first one there, ready to go. Coach and Dolby came in, with the rest of the team following him. At the sight of Gohan, Matt let loose a megawatt smile, and Gohan couldn't help but smile back.

"Well, Mr. Sondë," Coach said. "I take it that our Co-Captain has told you what the team would like you to do?"

Gohan nodded. "Yes, Coach, and I've decided that I'll accept the Captaincy."

It was hard to tell which was more overpowering: the enormous grin on Coach's face, or the overwhelming smug satisfaction on Dolby's. It didn't matter, because Gohan was going to be the captain of the Orange Star Junior High School tennis team, and he would be blasted if he let Avery or **any **of the Snotty Squad bully him into being anything else.

Gohan armed sweat off of his forehead as he started the walk home. The tennis practice had gone amazingly, even if it was only their second one, and the first one that Gohan had stayed for for the entire duration. It was also the first practice he'd attended in which he'd been a Captain. He felt positively euphoric.

He was about twenty yards from his house when he heard the footsteps behind him. His happiness vanished, to be replaced by apprehension and anger. 'Looks like I'm about to find out what the Snotty Squad has been planning for me.' Sure enough, he could see the silhouettes of what looked to be James and Michelle walking toward him.

Suddenly, they broke into a run, and Gohan did the same. He was so busy looking behind him, that he didn't see the fist until it connected with the side of his head. He saw bright lights go off in front of his eyes, and it took all his will not to fall unconscious right then and there, what with the blow to his head added to his exhaustion from tennis practice. 'They must've planned it this way,' Gohan thought. Instead of making him more scared, it oddly made him angrier. 'How **dare **they get upset at me for something **I'm** good at? Why can't I ever be good at anything? Forget that.'

His decision made, he shook the lights out of his head, and caught Jenifyr's hand before it connected with his face. He shook his head slowly, and she moved to slap him with her other hand. He caught that one, too, and then swung her around in time for Avery's fist to meet her stomach.

She let out a breathy sort of gasp, and doubled over. Avery's eyes flashed utter hatred at Gohan for a stretch that seemed longer than it actually was, then bent over to help Jenifyr. Gohan started to walk again, only to realize that, not only had he completely forgotten about Michelle and James, but he also hadn't realized that they were almost upon him.

'Why do there have to be **four of them?**' Gohan thought grudgingly, before he started to run again. James had gotten close enough for Gohan to realize that he had something long and thin in his hand. 'Is that a baseball bat?' Gohan thought, as he ran harder, ignoring the fatigue that threatened to make him stop in his tracks.

'He shouldn't have one of those, even if he is on the baseball team,' Gohan thought. 'Unless it's his own personal bat.' He didn't pay attention to that, as he was now in front of his house. Without another thought, he headed for the front door at a slow jog. He was so tired…

He got five steps from his front step when he felt James's bat connect with the middle of his back. He arched backward involuntarily, too tired even to cry out in pain. James's face was the last thing he saw as he heard the bat swing again.

Just as it made contact, Gohan heard his front door open, and a loud masculine yell that could only be his father. He smiled a tiny bit, and the sound of retreating footsteps was the last thing he heard before he let the pain and the exhaustion from working himself so hard take over, and then all was black.

-TBC-

**A/N II: **Please don't be too upset at me. D: He'll be fine, I promise. He'll even gain something out of this...well, he'll gain something other than pain and a thirst for vengeance. I'm trying to slowly transform him from what he'd been all through elementary school into something more. Something better, something capable of standing up to the Snotty Squad. Let me know how I'm doing, and if I'm rushing it too much, please. Thanks. :)

Also, if anyone would like a list of the OCs for this fanfiction, since there are a number of them, just drop me a PM and I'll be more than happy to make a list for you.

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	5. I Heard He Had A Style

**A/N: **And here is Chapter Four of His Saving Grace. I really hope I'm not making you all irrationally upset with all the crap I'm making Gohan put up with. But it's part of the story. My mindset is totally different from what it was when I started the story, but I can't just change the entire story like that. I won't. So, anyway, it doesn't get any easier yet. Complications will arise. But it won't be anything too horrible.

So, in this chapter is Gohan's first tennis match as the Captain of the Orange Star Junior High School tennis team. Wish him luck. Hope you enjoy the chapter, or that you don't hate it.

Also, to **ShadowMajin**, welcome to the story. I'm glad it caught your attention and intrigues you so, but it really is a simple story. At least, it seems that way to me. But, I'm writing the thing, so I guess my opinion doesn't really count. *shrug*

The title is part of a lyric from "Killing Me Softly", composed by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel, sung by Lori Lieberman, covered by Roberta Flack, and covered again by The Fugees.

**Warning: **There is swearing in this chapter.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Any unrecognizable characters, the Trouble Force Four, and all their relations are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 4 - I Heard He Had A Style**

Luckily, the day that the Snotty Squad had beat Gohan up was a Friday, so Gohan didn't have to worry about missing any school. However, because it was now the weekend, and because the Snotty Squad apparently didn't have any better way to spend their weekend, Gohan got anonymous notes slipped through his window. The letters were clippings from newspapers and magazines, so it was impossible to tell who had put it together, but Gohan didn't need to know whose handwriting it was to know who was doing it.

He woke up Saturday morning, and found a letter lying on the floor below his window. Wincing as he got up, he walked slowly over to it and picked it up to see what it said.

**H**o**p**e **y**o**u **l**e**a**r**n**e**d **y**o**u**r **l**e**s**s**o**n **s**l**o**b. **N**o **on**e **m**ess**e**s **w**i**t**h **u**s. **W**a**t**ch **y**o**u**r **b**a**c**k.

Gohan's eyes narrowed as he took in the message. He knew immediately who'd put it together. One of the Snotty Squad. 'They've already beaten me up, so why can't they just leave me **alone**?' he thought furiously, ripping the note into pieces.

"Gohan!" his mother's voice called, and Gohan winced involuntarily. Then, he wondered why, even though he'd managed to stand up to Avery Ratcliffe **and** Michelle Belafonte **and** James Pickett **and **Jenifyr Stone, he couldn't stand up to his mother. 'That'll have to change…soon,' he thought as he walked over to his door and opened it.

"Yes, Mom?" he asked, and she stuck her head around the corner from the kitchen.

"Some of your friends are here to see you," she said, and Gohan raised his eyebrows. "Well, don't just stand there, go and talk to them!" Gohan nodded hurriedly and went to get dressed, only to find that he was still in the tennis outfit he'd been in yesterday. He shrugged, and then flinched at the soreness in his back. He turned experimentally as he walked toward the door, and quickly found that he couldn't rotate his back very far in either direction without his back hurting. Nor could he bend forward or backward too far without it groaning in protest.

He let out a sigh as he opened the door to find Emily and Matt standing there. "Hi, Matt, Emily," Gohan said, and Matt and Emily smiled.

"Hi, Gohan," Emily said.

"Er, Gohan, can we come in?" Matt asked, and Gohan flushed slightly as he nodded and stepped back so that they could enter.

"Well, Gohan, aren't you going to introduce me to your friends?" ChiChi said, wiping her hands on a dishtowel. "Or are your manners not that well-developed yet?"

Gohan's jaw clenched minutely, but he managed to say with little inflection, "Yes, sorry, Mom. This is Matt, and this is Emily. They're my teammates on the tennis team, and Matt is Co-Captain."

"Ah, yes, that stupid game of tennis," ChiChi said, making no attempt to disguise the dislike in her tone. "You're the Co-Captain, Matthew?"

"Yes, ma'am, and it's just Matt," Matt replied with a nod. He missed Gohan's frantic tiny headshake, and watched as ChiChi's eyes narrowed.

"I will call you by your proper name, because that is the name your parents gave you. Don't correct me," she said, eyes still narrowed.

Gohan sighed and said, "Mom, we're gonna go out."

"Where are you planning to go, young man?" ChiChi asked, rounding on Gohan. "You just got beaten up yesterday! You aren't going anywhere!"

"Yes, Mom, I am," Gohan replied, refusing to flinch at the glare ChiChi gave him. "Our first tennis match is today, and I won't miss it."

"Show your mother some respect, Gohan!" ChiChi nearly yelled. "You aren't going to that damned tennis game, and that is that!"

"Yes, ChiChi, he is," Goku's voice came floating from Gohan's parents' bedroom. He walked out of the room, his gait a little shaky, but only a little. He hid it well enough, though Gohan could tell by the bloodshot eyes and the stubble that Goku had been drinking. 'At least he kept the bottle in the room,' Gohan thought, turning his head down so that his friends wouldn't see his blush.

Obviously, Goku hadn't had that much, because his gait got steadier the more he walked, and Gohan couldn't smell the alcohol as he stood behind Gohan. 'Thank Kami for small favors,' Gohan thought as ChiChi's eyes narrowed even farther, if that was even possible.

"Oh, really? Are you aware of how badly he was beaten yesterday?"

"Since I was the one who found him on the front step, yes, ChiChi, I'd say that I do," Goku shot back, and Gohan was startled by the hardness in Goku's voice. "If he can get up and move, then he can get enough motion to lessen the pain in his back. He's going to his tennis match."

"Sure! Undermine my authority, like you always do!" ChiChi yelled, and Goku moved Gohan behind him.

"Gohan, take your friends and go outside, okay?" Goku muttered, and Gohan nodded and motioned to Emily and Matt, who followed him outside quickly. As Gohan closed the door, he could hear his dad talking, and ChiChi screeching in response.

"Why do your parents fight like that?" Emily asked. "Really, it isn't that important whether or not you go to the match, is it?"

"My mom is…very, um, touchy when it comes to telling me what to do," Gohan said, and Matt's head tilted to one side.

"That doesn't make any sense," he said. "She shouldn't care about how much control she has over you compared to your dad. That's just stupid."

"I know," Gohan said, as he started to walk away from the house. "But it's what she does, every time she tells me I can or can't do something, and Dad steps in. He and I are much closer than my mom and I are."

"You don't think your mom is jealous of your dad, do you?" Emily asked, and Gohan looked at her with slightly widened eyes. "Right, sorry," Emily said with a quick shake of her head. "It's none of my business."

Gohan didn't say anything, and the three of them lapsed into silence as they headed toward the school. However, Emily's remark floated through Gohan's mind the entire way, so that his head was anything but silent on the inside. 'Is she right?' he wondered. 'No, she can't be…it's my** mother**, of all people. Why would she be jealous of my dad? She can't be jealous.'

Maybe the more he repeated it, the more he'd believe it.

They got to the school when Matt checked his watch, and said, "Come on, you two, we've only got about five minutes until we have to go to East City." The three of them headed for the back of the school, Gohan having to lag behind every so often because his back hurt so badly. Matt tried to be patient, but more often than not, he ended up tapping his foot as he and Emily waited. Emily, for her part, was either far more patient than Matt, or was far better at hiding her impatience than Matt was, as she only stopped and waited, watching Gohan as he caught up.

"I'm sorry," Gohan said, as he winced yet again. "Maybe it'd be better if I didn't go after all."

"I don't think so, not now that you've come all the way here," Matt said. "We're going to that tennis match, and even if you can't play, you're still the Captain. It's your responsibility to be there to at least support the team, and be strong for them."

"Thanks, Matt, but I don't need the lecture," Gohan said shortly.

"Well, then don't make stupid suggestions," Matt shot back.

"I only made the suggestion because I wasn't sure if I would be able to play!" Gohan said hotly. "It isn't my fault that James Pickett decided to smash me in the back with a baseball bat!"

Matt stopped and looked at him. "They…He did that to you?"

"Yeah. I'm not just acting like my back hurts for the fun of it," Gohan said.

"Gohan…I'm sorry," Matt said quietly, as they started walking again. "I didn't realize that he'd hit you with a bat. And even if I knew that, I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at James, Avery, Michelle, and Jenifyr for attacking you because of Avery's insecurities. I just took it out on you. Sorry."

Gohan sighed and shook his head. "Never mind it, Matt. It's no big deal. The pain's starting to go away already. I can already move farther than I could even twenty minutes ago."

"I'm glad, but that wasn't really fair of me - "

"And if it was really an issue, then I'd pursue it further," Gohan cut across him. "Now come on. It's okay, really. We have a match to get to." Sure enough, they'd found the coaches and the team. Although, Gohan felt like they were missing someone.

"Hey, where's Jack?" Matt asked, and Gohan realized that Jack was indeed not there.

"Family emergency," Coach said, and tried to hide his disappointment. Dolby was nowhere near as discreet, and his frown deeply creased his forehead.

'I hope everything's all right,' Gohan thought. He'd become quickly attached to the kid with the "old soul", he realized. The coaches quickly hurried everyone onto the bus, and Coach noticed Gohan's wince when he started to climb the stairs.

"Gohan, what happened to you? You weren't like this yesterday. Did you really tire yourself out that much at practice?" Coach asked, and Gohan shook his head.

"I'd rather not talk about it, Coach, if that's all right. I'm here still, and we need to go so that we aren't late." He could tell that Coach wanted to inquire further about Gohan's apparent pain, but seemed to know that he'd only make Gohan more uncomfortable. So, he simply nodded and gently helped Gohan up into the bus, then took a seat in the front while Gohan moved to sit next to Matt.

Apparently, however, Dolby was nowhere near as inclined to let it be, as he sat down in the seat across the aisle from Gohan and asked, "Why do you look like you're in pain?"

"It's nothing, Dolby. Really," Gohan replied, but Dolby shook his head.

"It isn't nothing, and you're going to tell me what the problem is."

"I'd really rather not," Gohan muttered, and Dolby cleared his throat. Gohan sighed, and said, "Fine. Yesterday, as I was going home, Avery, Jenifyr, Michelle, and James ambushed me. James hit me in the middle of the back with a baseball bat. That's all."

"That's **all**?" Dolby asked quietly. Gohan quickly realized that Dolby was unlike his mother in that when she got upset, she got louder. Dolby got quieter. Gohan wasn't sure which unsettled him more. "You should've stayed home, if you were that hurt."

"I wasn't going to miss our first tennis match," Gohan said with conviction. "Even if I can't play, I can show support for the team." Dolby didn't reply, but stood up and moved to sit with his brother. They immediately began talking in subdued voices, and Gohan couldn't be bothered to try and listen in.

"You're noble, Gohan," Matt said, and Emily nodded in agreement; both had inadvertently listened to the short conversation between Gohan and Dolby. Gohan shrugged, and made chatter with the other members of the team until the bus slowed and they piled out into the East City Middle School parking lot.

"Do they not have tennis courts?" Gohan asked, as he looked around and saw nothing but asphalt, followed by a vast field.

"All their games are played inside," Coach said, and they headed toward the building. Once inside, a very helpful, conveniently-placed floor plan pointed them to the gymnasium.

They walked inside to find the place packed. The gymnasium was positively enormous. 'Good thing, since our opponents look to be the sort of people who like to be aggressive,' Gohan thought as he studied the East City tennis team. It was easy to see who the Captain was, as he wore a t-shirt that said "I'M WITH THE CAPTAIN" on it under an arrow pointing upward.

Gohan rolled his eyes, but went forward nonetheless to shake hands with the East City Captain. "Good luck," Gohan said.

"I don't need luck," the Captain scoffed, and Gohan's eyes narrowed. He and the Captain shook hands, and then Gohan turned and walked back to the rest of his team.

"I'm going to go against that Captain in a singles match," Gohan said decisively, and Coach shook his head.

"Not with your back troubling you like it is." Gohan sighed and bent backward until he could place his hands on the ground. He straightened and looked Coach in the eye. His back fairly screamed with pain on the way down, but was quiet on the way back up.

"I'm going to play against the Captain," Gohan said, and Coach exhaled and rubbed a hand over his orange cap.

"Fine, Gohan, since your back doesn't seem to be an issue, you can have your match. There's still a doubles match before that, though. Anyone in particular you'd like to play?"

"I get to choose that?" Gohan asked, and Coach nodded.

"Since you're the Captain, you have some say in who participates in various matches. You don't get to make the decision yourself, but you can confer with Dolby and I about it. So what are your ideas?"

Gohan thought. "Matt and…Emily."

"Why them?"

"They seem to get along with each other easily in normal situations. And from what I've seen, they're just as cooperative with each other on the court. They'd make a good team."

Coach nodded, then said, "What about Monica and Melissa? Have you seen them work together?"

Gohan replied, "I did for a little while yesterday during practice, but not enough to make a good assessment. My opinion remains with Matt and Emily." Coach called Dolby over, and they held a whispered conversation.

Finally, Coach said, "We'll put Matt and Emily in there, then. Dolby and I usually pick the players, anyway, so this should be an interesting change of pace. Go let them know." Gohan nodded and went over to Matt and Emily, and told them what the coaches had said.

"We won't let you or the coaches down," Emily said, and Matt nodded. Gohan nodded, and then thought he heard his name. Looking in the crowd on the Visitors' side, he saw his dad waving at him. Gohan waved back with a grin, then made a gesture asking, "How did you know to come here?"

Goku held up a packet of paper. Gohan recognized it as the game schedule, and nodded and turned to the coaches. "My dad is here," he said, and the coaches immediately began to search for him when Gohan pointed him out.

"Well, indeed he is," Dolby said.

"You nervous, Gohan?" Coach inquired, and Gohan shook his head. If anything, his father being there made him feel much more comfortable.

Suddenly, a voice could be heard ringing out over all the other voices. "The matches will now get underway," the voice proclaimed. "First will be a doubles match between Matthew Jasso-Helod and Emily Morgane, from Orange Star Junior High School, and Evan Williams and Kathryn Stevenson, from our very own East City Middle School! Will all the players please prepare for the match and move onto the court."

"Good luck, Matt, Emily," Gohan said, clapping Matt on the back and giving Emily a light shove. They both smiled at him and picked up their rackets, and walked onto the court. On the other side of the net, Evan and Kathryn moved onto the court, looking far more serious than Matt and Emily.

Evan pulled out a ball, and the announcer said, "Evan Williams prepares to make the serve." Evan tossed the ball into the air and smacked it, and the match was on.

The crowd was probably finding it difficult to follow the ball, because it bounced off the floor so well. 'Doesn't really seem to be practical,' Gohan thought idly as the ball flew high into the air. He leaned forward as Emily's racket came up, and his eyes followed its arc as it smashed the ball to the other side of the court, bouncing past Evan so quickly it flew past him, bounced off the bleachers, and ended up rolling across the floor in front of him. He served again after Matt and Emily had taken the point, and from then on the two doubles teams seemed to swap points.

Finally, Matt and Emily had the advantage, and it was Game Point, with Emily serving. She tossed and caught the ball a couple of times, then threw the ball into the air. She smacked the ball, and it cut a neat line across the court, and bounced on the boundary line before landing in the bleachers. Emily had gotten a service ace. She and Matt high-fived each other as the announcer called out, "Game Point scored! Game goes to Matthew Jasso-Helod and Emily Morgane, Orange Star Junior High School!" Evan and Kathryn looked extremely disappointed, but they shook hands with Matt and Emily agreeably enough. The four players walked off the court to their respective teams, and Gohan told them, "You two did amazingly. See, Coach, what did I tell you? They make a good team."

Coach smiled and nodded. "Good call, Gohan. Are you ready for your match?" Gohan nodded and spun his racket in his hand.

"Good job, Orange Star Junior High," the announcer said. "Next and last match on the agenda for the first tennis match of the year is a singles match between the two Captains. Gohan Sondë is the Captain of the Orange Star Junior High School tennis team, and a newcomer both to tennis and to Captaincy. Good luck for the rest of the season, Gohan.

"You all know your captain, East City! Gohan Sondë will be facing off against Jeremy Handel!" It wasn't hard to tell which side was louder in cheering for their captain.

Gohan walked onto the court, spinning his racket and ignoring the slight twinges in his back that twanged every time he took a step. As he waited for Handel to make the first serve to start the match, he twisted experimentally and bent at different points. He found that he could bend at his waist with no issue, and that his shoulders could twist as well, also with no issue.

It was this way, back straight and rotated, doubled over, that Gohan returned the serve. Handel flicked his wrist, and the ball seemed to be repelled from him back over to Gohan's side of the court. Gohan twisted the other way, and hit the ball back to Handel. Handel watched the ball for a second before his arm suddenly shot out, and the ball flew toward Gohan's head. He ducked, and the ball went into the bleachers. Gohan half-smiled at Handel, who made no reply but to turn and head for his corner to await Gohan's serve.

Gohan received another ball, and tossed it only a small way into the air before he hit it with a sideways slice. Handel moved to one side and brought his racket up, and the ball hit the racket and soared over the net. Gohan backhanded it hard, and it touched the top of the net as it passed over onto Handel's side of the court. He lobbed it high into the air, and Gohan spiked it hard into the ground on the opposite side. It bounced and Handel hit it, and it bounced on his side again before going over the net into Gohan's waiting hand.

"Point - Gohan!" the announcer said, and Gohan gave another half-smile. Handel only scowled and spun his racket. Gohan served the ball, and Handel smacked it hard. It zipped over the net and hit Gohan in the midsection before he could twist out of the way. He let out a tiny exhaling sound as the announcer said, "Point - Jeremy!"

'If he wants to play Hit-the-Opponent, we can play that game,' Gohan thought as he threw Handel the ball so that he could serve. Handel smacked it hard again, and this time Gohan smacked into the ground on his side, and then hit it from underneath, sending it soaring…right into Handel's face.

"Point - Gohan!" The rallies between Gohan and Handel got more heated, and Gohan managed to ignore his burning back throughout it.

Finally, the score stood with the advantage to Gohan. It was Handel's serve. He spike-served the ball, and Gohan moved to one side, and twisted his back as far as it would go. When the time came, he twisted the other way like he was on a spring release. He let out a grunt as he smacked the ball into the ground on Handel's side. Handel stooped for the ball, and it bounced over his racket and off the court.

"And the point, game, and match go to Gohan Sondë, and Orange Star Junior High School!" Gohan pumped his arm in the air, and then his back let out a scream of pain that he mimicked. His back felt like it was made of broken pieces of glass that slid gratingly against each other as he collapsed to the ground. Matt was the first one to his side, followed closely by Goku, Coach, and Dolby.

"I knew he shouldn't have played today!" Dolby said furiously. "His damned back is going to get him permanently paralyzed! Damn it all!" He threw his cap on the ground while Goku picked Gohan up with one arm under his neck and the other under his knees.

"I should've listened to your mother, Gohan," Goku said quietly as he started to run outside to take Gohan to the hospital. "I'm so sorry."

-TBC-

**A/N II: **And here the story shall be paused for a few days. I need to get some sleep, as tomorrow is the senior class trip to Cedar Point. I will be gone tomorrow from 6 am to midnight 29 May, and then I need to be up to be at the high school by 10 am for the mandatory graduation practice. Then Friday afternoon is the Baccalaureate ceremony, and then Saturday is Graduation. Then the day after that, I'm supposed to be at three different graduation parties. So I won't be able to be on the computer much or at all, unfortunately.

Review, please. I'd appreciate it. :D Again, if anyone would like to see the list of OCs I have so far (there are 33), just drop me a PM and I'll be more than willing to send you the list as soon as I can.

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	6. Through the Fire and the Flames

**A/N: Attention: **I am now an alumnus. Yay me. :D And here's Chapter 5. Thanks for being patient with me. These chapters keep getting longer, despite the fact that I don't really want them to. But hey, at least ChiChi finally gets told about herself. I made Gohan like me in that aspect, in that we're both very good at telling people about themselves.

The title is part of a lyric from "Through the Fire and Flames" by DragonForce.

**Warning: **I did a bit of experimentation with mentalities in this chapter, in a fit of inspiration. As such, this chapter contains emotional anguish, and a couple of somewhat abstract concepts. It shouldn't be hard to figure out, but I'll explain more at the bottom.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Any unrecognizable characters, the Trouble Force Four, and all their relations are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 5 - Through the Fire and the Flames We'll Carry On**

Overall, Saturday was not a very good day, Gohan reflected as he watched the ceiling from his hospital bed. There were some gems, like winning the tennis match, being able to represent the team as their Captain, and seeing his dad there to support him and the team.

However, those gems were lost in the rough.

Being attacked the previous day…receiving the "letter" from the Snotty Squad…being yelled at by his mother…becoming the core of yet another argument between his parents…having his eyes opened to a particularly ugly aspect of his mother's personality…getting into an argument with Matt…ending up in the hospital.

Those occurrences, however minor they may or may not have been, formed an overwhelming sort of darkness that Gohan found it very hard to see through. He knew the good things that had happened yesterday were there, and that they should make him feel better, but at the moment, he didn't see how they could. Or why he should feel better.

Not only had he completely disregarded his mother's concerns, he'd also gone against all sorts of common sense in going to the game, and had practically guaranteed himself a world of pain by insisting he played. Not to mention, that he'd taken the risk and had fallen, and disappointed both his coaches.

Now, here he was, in the hospital, having to deal with his father's unceasing repentance and his mother's unceasing smugness.

"What did I tell you?" ChiChi asked, the picture of motherly affection…or not. "Didn't I say that you shouldn't go to that stupid tennis game, not with your being attacked Friday? But you did. You ignored me and listened to your idiot of a father, and now here you are in the hospital." Gohan closed his eyes. He couldn't even find it in himself to look at his mother and face the accusations she was making. He couldn't face them because he already knew them all to be true.

"You just **had** to think your father was smarter than me, didn't you?" ChiChi asked, moving from arrogance to condemnation. "Hopefully, this little lesson will serve to stay in your mind next time I tell you something. You should've learned by now."

Gohan felt the tears start to build behind his closed eyelids. 'No…no, don't you dare start falling,' he told them sternly. 'So I decided that my father knew better than my mother, and got myself even more seriously hurt. That doesn't give you the right to fall in the face of what I already knew. For the love of Kami, **stay off my face**!' He gave his head a tiny shake, and his mother fell deadly silent.

Gohan opened his eyes to find her in his face, jaw working furiously. "Are you **disagreeing** with me? Do you **still** think that you and your slob of a father didn't do anything wrong? Your disrespect disgusts me."

"Shut up," Gohan said quietly, fists clenching as the tears started to fall, whether he wanted them to or not. But this time, they weren't tears of self-deprecation, they were tears of anger on behalf of his father. He'd had enough of hearing the word "slob" when the Trouble Force Four called him one repeatedly. He'd be blasted if he was going to let his mother lump his father into that category.

"Excuse me?" ChiChi asked, placing her hands on her hips in fists. "What did you just say to me?"

"I told you to shut up," Gohan replied, and had to work to keep his voice level. He shoved his rage into The Fog - 'I didn't think I could do that,' he thought - and continued. "My father is **not** a slob. He is a much better parent than you'll ever be. I've had enough of you talking to him and about him like he's something less than human. No more." His voice, thankfully, managed to stay calm and level throughout his little speech. Its lack of emotion only added to the unsettling effect it had. ChiChi's eyes narrowed and she waited a little before speaking again.

"I am still your mother, Gohan, and you will **not** tell me what to do. I'm the adult, and you're the child. I am smarter, more mature, better able to handle myself, and I am certainly more aware of what your father is than you are."

"You're the adult," Gohan repeated, shoving his emotions into The Fog as quickly as they arose. He couldn't afford to let emotions cloud his logic and his speech, or she'd never get it.

"That's right. The sooner you realize that, the better," ChiChi said with a nod.

"You're also my mother."

"Right again. You're already smarter than your useless father."

"What did I say about insulting him?" Gohan asked, and allowed a bit of the rage to tinge his voice. "He is **not** useless, he is **not** stupid, he is **not** a slob, and you **will not** call him those things **any more**."

"Don't tell me what to do!" ChiChi yelled.

"Very mature of you, 'mother'," Gohan replied coolly, and ChiChi's face reddened slightly. "Very motherly of you to insult me and my dad at every possible opportunity while I'm in pain."

"Pain that's your own fault in the first place!"

"Pain that's James's fault for attacking me," Gohan replied, still in that dead, level tone that made ChiChi uneasy in spite of herself. "How intelligent of you, to continue to refuse to see who put me in this situation. How mature of you to, instead of comforting me, your **only son**, insult me. You're not supposed to be a bully, mother. So tell me…why are you being like this?"

"Because if you had listened to me in the first place, you wouldn't be here!" ChiChi yelled, loud enough to shake the windows.

"What amazing ability to handle yourself, 'mother'," Gohan said softly. The way he said "mother" made it sound like he was only calling ChiChi that to let her know that he didn't consider her his mother. "Screaming loud enough to shake the windows, instead of telling things to me calmly, and without making me feel like a worthless idiot."

ChiChi couldn't speak, though whether that was from shock, shame, or unbelievable fury, Gohan didn't know. So he continued. "Finally, if you're so much more aware of what my dad is, why haven't you seen that, through everything that's happened, he's been there to support me? He's been there to see if I'm all right, to make me feel like I'm worth something, to **not** tear me down everywhere I turn.

"I don't think that makes him useless, stupid, or a slob," Gohan said quietly. "I think that makes him an amazing father, and a husband you don't deserve."

"How **dare **you?" ChiChi hissed. "You don't know **anything**, you stupid child."

"There you go again, lowering my self-esteem, because, despite all that I've said about you, I still love you. You're still my mother. I love you too, Mom," Gohan said bitterly.

"Don't pull that with me," ChiChi scoffed. "It didn't work when your father tried it on me, and it won't work with you either. You two are always teaming up to try and take me down. I don't see why; it isn't like I've done anything wrong."

Gohan decided it was time to see if what Emily had said about ChiChi held any ground in truth. "You're jealous of Dad, aren't you?" ChiChi stiffened, and that was all the confirmation Gohan needed. "You're jealous because I'm closer to him than I am to you, and that he gets to do things with me that you don't."

He shook his head. "You honestly shock me with your lack of **any** brains whatsoever." His father shifted, the first move he'd made since this whole exchange had started, and Gohan caught his movement. His father gave him a look that said, "Don't insult her. That'll only make you like her."

Gohan gave a minute nod, then said, "Let me rephrase that. You shock me with your lack of understanding. If you'd take a minute to **think**, then maybe you'd realize that it isn't anyone's fault that you and I are…not as close as you'd like…but your own."

ChiChi gave a strangled sort of gasp, and turned and ran from the room, slamming the door behind her. Gohan could hear her shouts for a while after she was gone, and sighed. His father opened his mouth, perhaps to lecture Gohan, but instead, Goku said, "Let it out."

That flipped the switch. Suddenly, The Fog was gone, and Gohan was left to drown in a sea of fireballs made of rage, guilt, exasperation, fear, pity, and a host of other emotions that congealed with each other until they formed one giant firestorm of emotion that Gohan didn't have any idea how to deal with. He could only drown, and drown.

'It was all true…She was jealous. And like a kid, she didn't do anything but make it worse.' The fire grew. 'She could've at least **tried** to do something other than yell at me and insult my dad to try and make me get closer to her.' The fire deepened in color. 'Doesn't she know that my dad is the only one I have to turn to when Avery Ratcliffe decides to try and make my life miserable? And that's **her fault, too**.' The fire blazed brighter than ever, doubled in height and intensity, and turned crimson-orange.

'She doesn't **care** enough even to apologize for her mistakes and try to atone for them.'

The fire took over.

Gohan gasped as its heat spread through him, heating him up until he could feel the flames licking through his skin, setting his very blood aflame.

It was then that he recognized the fire for what it was. It was hate. And there, in the middle of it, was the one person that was both its birth and its bane. ChiChi.

At the thought of her name, the hatefire turned into an inferno, and coalesced into the shape of an enormous dragon. In its jaws was ChiChi, and all Gohan had to do was wish it, and she'd be crushed out of existence. Then, maybe, would it finally be appeased. Then maybe the id dragon would be appeased.

Gohan closed his eyes, and suddenly, a voice sounded in his head.

"Gohan…I wanted you to know that…"

He couldn't hear the rest, but the voice held something in it that made him want to listen to it. The voice caught the id dragon's attention long enough for Ch - the woman - to vanish. The id dragon clearly wanted to listen to the voice longer.

It was at this time that another part of Gohan awoke, a calming, completely right and good part. Gohan looked and saw that it was a bear, a giant bear with spiked white fur and silver eyes. It told the id dragon that of course it could not and **would not** kill the woman. It was wrong. That would hurt Gohan, and it would hurt Goku as well. 'Dad.' At the thought of his dad, a third part of Gohan arose from the black depths of his mind. It was of deepest blue, with wings that were the color of the sky on a sunny day.

It was an eagle. The black depths said that it was the one path that Gohan could take. _**Follow the Eagle**_, it told Gohan, **_and it will lead you home_**. Gohan nodded and held a hand aloft. The eagle circled down, and its tail feathers wrapped lightly around Gohan's wrist. Once it did, Gohan could hear the voice that had caught the id dragon's attention and allowed what the black depths called the Bear to call for the Eagle.

"I wanted to let you know that I'm with you, Gohan. I heard what James did to you, and…"

The Eagle flew onward, and the voice got louder. The Eagle seemed to change shape until it was a sphere, and then it split in two.

Gohan opened his eyes to find himself looking into two pools of deepest blue framed by hair that was as dark as the black depths. The eyes turned startled, and they pulled back until Gohan could see who they belonged to.

"Videl," he said, slightly shocked, and Videl nodded.

"Hi, Gohan."

"What are you doing here?" Gohan asked, looking around for his dad, who was standing at the window, looking out at the city, shaking slightly. "Dad, what's wrong?"

At Gohan's question, Goku spun around and strode forward, catching Gohan up in a nearly bone-crushing hug. "Gohan, I was so worried about you. I shouldn't have told you to let it all out. Your mother's right…I am an idiot. I'm so sorry, Gohan. All I do is make mistakes."

Gohan's eyes narrowed, and he felt the heat as the id dragon tried to come to the surface of the black depths at the mention of the woman and the thoughts she brought with her. "Dad, don't talk about yourself like that," he said softly, straining to keep the id dragon where it should be. He caught Videl's eyes, and suddenly relaxed as the Eagle soared to the forefront once more, beating the id dragon back into the black depths.

"You aren't stupid, Daddy. I love you," Gohan said, and Goku smiled as he pulled back.

"I love you too, Gohan." Gohan smiled at him, and then turned to Videl.

"I just felt like you needed me to be here," Videl said with a shrug. "I don't know why, since we've never really talked to each other."

'But I've always noticed you there,' Gohan thought. Suddenly, he realized that she had always noticed him there, as well. "Well, thank you," Gohan said aloud. "I appreciate your coming here."

Videl nodded, blue eyes watching him as the door opened and the doctor came bustling in. Gohan looked at the doctor, and found him to be startlingly familiar. He looked for a name tag or something, and found it to say "Dr. Botani". He looked so familiar, however, that Gohan had to ask, "Do you know Nurse Rose, at Orange Star Junior High?"

The doctor had looked extremely stressed when he'd come in. At the mention of Nurse Rose, he relaxed, but only slightly. "Yes, she's my twin sister," he said. "I'm Dr. Rowan Botani, and you appeared to be dangerously aggravated just before I'd come in."

Gohan chose to ignore the invitation to tell the doctor what had aggravated him so much, and instead said, "Then you can tell me what's wrong with my back?"

The doctor nodded. "One of your intervertebral disks was knocked out of alignment with your spine. It wasn't far, so it should be fine and slide back on its own. Its connections to your vertebrae weren't entirely severed, just stretched more than they should be. However, in cases of extreme agitation, as with what happened at your tennis match, it gets thrown out of alignment even more, and your vertebrae knock and grind against each other. That's what caused you so much pain."

Gohan nodded to show he'd understood, and, out of curiosity, asked, "How long will it take for my back to be back to normal?"

"With no extremely strenuous activity, it should take no more than three or four weeks," Dr. Botani replied. "That means no sports or, rather, no straining exercises. Those will only stretch the connections between your disk and your spine, and it may sever those connections entirely, in which case we'd have to operate to either forcibly reconnect your spine or remove and fuse your spine together with one less vertebra."

Gohan winced, but nodded, and tried to put the impatience in The Fog, like he'd done with the woman. However, when he tried, The Fog dissipated entirely, and left him looking out over a vast expanse of nothingness. 'Is this what The Fog hid for so long?' Gohan wondered, then forced himself to listen to Dr. Botani.

"In the meantime, I want you to rest, Gohan. We can't have you participating in tennis matches or competitions or things like that when your back is so perilously close to becoming a permanent issue. With any luck, your spine will repair itself, and we won't have to do anything. But you must stay resting."

"I still have to go to school, though," Gohan replied, after letting the impatience run around until it was gone. "What am I supposed to do if I can't go to school? We've only been in school for two days." 'And those two days have already made the year far different from what I ever expected,' Gohan thought, but did not say.

"Go to school, Gohan. That's no problem," Dr. Botani said. "But, in the name of Hippocrates, don't do anything that might get you hurt."

Two days later, Gohan walked carefully to school with Matt, who'd come to visit him on Sunday. "You were in the newspaper, Gohan," Matt said as they walked through the front doors. "'Newcomer Captain Thrashes Opponent, Then Thrashes On The Floor'."

"That's wonderful," Gohan said sarcastically. Matt would've replied, but they'd been running late, and the bell rang. They both left to go to their respective homerooms. Mr. Dolby was a little more formal with Gohan than he'd been the previous week, but other than that, things were no different.

Well, one thing was different. James Pickett left Gohan completely and utterly alone, making no indication that he'd even noticed Gohan enter the classroom. 'That's a nice change,' Gohan thought, though he couldn't help but be curious as to why James had so suddenly decided that Gohan was no longer even worth his consternation.

The day passed with complete silence from the Snotty Squad, which was beginning to seriously unnerve Gohan. Videl talked to him more often, however, since they were in most of the same classes. That was a silver lining.

The end of the day came, and Videl reminded Gohan that they had to go to the meeting of what Mariya-sensei called "The Triple Tenet Club".

He and Videl walked into the room where the club was supposed to be meeting, and saw Matt, Emily, Greg, and Mariya-sensei standing there. Mariya-sensei regarded the two silently, then said, "Now that we are all present, we shall begin the first actual meeting of the Triple Tenet Club."

"Mariya-sensei," Gohan said, and Mariya looked at him.

"Yes, Gohan-kun."

"I have a question."

"I have an answer."

Gohan paused, then said, "Why is your club called the Triple Tenet Club?"

Mariya began speaking almost immediately. "The Triple Tenet Club is called thus because of the style of martial arts that I teach. The style has no name, but it is based on three different mindsets, and thus has three different facets of specialization. Furthermore, each facet has three levels."

"What are the facets?" Videl asked before Gohan could open his mouth.

"The three facets are the Dragon, the Bear, and the Eagle," Mariya-sensei replied, and Gohan started. Was it coincidence that her three facets happened to be the three animals that had shown themselves in Gohan's mind?

Mariya-sensei was still speaking. "The mindset of the Dragon is that of instant gratification and ruthlessness. Those who choose to follow the Dragon must learn to fight brutally, overwhelmingly, rapidly, and fluidly, as the dragon does. Those who decide to walk the path of the Bear find their focus to be on steadfastness, clarity, and balance. And those who pick the Eagle must learn to dance around their opponent, always in perfect equilibrium, and must learn to strike with certainty and accuracy."

"What are the three levels of each facet?" Emily asked, and Mariya-sensei shook her head.

"That answer, you will have to wait to find out," she replied. "Now then, we must pick the facet we choose to study. To do that, I myself will attempt to discern what animal lies in your soul. Let us begin. Gohan-kun, you first." She moved forward and placed a finger to Gohan's forehead and closed her eyes.

Gohan shuddered as he felt the black depths react to Mariya's probe. The Eagle came first, flying up into the probing presence and battering at it with its wings. Next came the Bear, taking huge swipes with its claws. Finally, the id dragon reared from the black depths, easily the biggest of all three, and shot a blast of fire into the presence.

Gohan opened to find Mariya-sensei staring at him with her eyes slightly narrowed. The look reminded him slightly of Ch - the woman, and he narrowed his own eyes in return. "Is something amiss, Mariya-sensei?" he asked, and Mariya shook her head, seeming to realize how she was acting.

"No, Gohan-kun. The experience of attempting to find your inner animal was simply…unique, that's all."

"Why, what did you see?" Greg asked curiously.

"I found all three working in unison, though the Dragon was definitely more prevalent than the others, if I'm not mistaken," Mariya replied, and Gohan had to fight to roll his eyes. 'She isn't mistaken, and she knows it,' he thought.

"Gohan-kun, I believe you will follow the path of the Dragon," Mariya said, and Gohan nodded. Mariya nodded in return and moved onto Videl, Greg, Emily, and Matt. Videl was found to be the Eagle, along with Gregory, and Matt and Emily were both found to follow the Bear.

"Well, Gohan-kun, it would appear that not only do you follow the Dragon, but you must also do so alone," Mariya said, and Gohan nodded. 'It isn't like that's any different from any other day. It's just that now I have to deal with fire, both in the martial arts and in myself.'

-TBC-

**A/N II: **All right. I hope you noticed that I called the dragon in Gohan's mind the "id dragon".

The id, according to Sigmund Freud, is the part of the mind in which base instincts reside. It's the part of the mind that works on the pleasure-pain principle, and is concerned primarily with instant gratification. The other two animals that showed themselves, the Bear and the Eagle, are the superego and the ego, respectively. The superego is the complete opposite of the id, and the ego is the mediator between the two, who follows the reality principle and attempts to satisfy both the id and the superego through socially acceptable means.

I picked the dragon for the id for obvious reasons. I picked the bear for the superego because the superego is morality, and I always thought bears were very moral creatures. I picked the eagle for the ego because I like eagles. :P

Anyway, hopefully I didn't botch that up so badly no one could understand what I was trying to convey in the chapter. Basically, Gohan tried to hide his emotions, and it didn't work, and he came face-to-face with the impulses that reside in all human beings, according to Freud. Also, this chapter is where Videl starts to become more important to Gohan, and their bond will continue to grow.

Review, please. I want to know what you thought of my attempt at describing what can happen in someone's mind in cases of extreme stress and fatigue.

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	7. They Call Me Mr Fahrenheit

**A/N: **This stupid story keeps making me have to research various concepts and figures in order for it to be written. Stupid story. Also, this chapter is a bit of a fast-forward, and from here on, the story will be a little bit faster-paced. I still have a lot to get through, and since this will go up through high school for Gohan, I kind of needed to move things along.

There is a tiny battle in this chapter, between Gohan and Mariya Stone. It isn't a serious battle, but it's a match nonetheless. Mariya will have her significance later on in the story, but for now, she's just Mariya-sensei.

Explanations of the different figures I've mentioned in the chapter will be at the bottom, extremely abbreviated. So will translations. I don't think it'll get quite this bad any more, but I wanted all my readers to be aware of the outside figures I've brought to the story, rather than leaving you floundering with all these names and things.

Videl and Gohan didn't have much interaction here, either, but it's more than what's been in previous chapters. *sigh* I'll see what I can do in the future.

The title is part of a lyric from "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Any unrecognizable characters, the Trouble Force Four, and all their relations are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 6 - They Call Me Mr. Fahrenheit**

Gohan snapped awake and bolted upright. 'The pain…it's gone,' he marveled as he twisted around experimentally. Sure enough, there was no pain at all in his back, not even a twinge. He grinned and leaped out of bed.

Those three and a half weeks had been the most boring of Gohan's still-short life. Or, rather, they would've been, if not for Matt…and Videl.

Videl.

If she hadn't shown up a few weeks ago in the hospital, Gohan wondered whether or not he'd be entirely sane. Or the same person. The id dragon still reared its head whenever he thought about the woman, but he'd been able to handle that by not thinking of her.

Of course, that had just given the id dragon incentive to widen its focus. Its expanded focus now included the leader, the instigator, the attacker, and the daughter.

Avery, Michelle, James, Jenifyr. The thought of their names, like the thought of the woman, caused the id dragon to rear up in the black depths and demand revenge on them for all that they'd done to him. Its burning want simmered in Gohan's bloodstream all the time.

And then the Eagle would come and soothe the burn, and Videl would find him. He still didn't know how she knew to do that, and whenever he'd asked, she'd always tell him that she just **knew**.

Gohan was getting very good at dismissing any thoughts of the woman, the leader, the instigator, the attacker, and the daughter. Scarily good. But he had to be, because the Eagle could only do so much. If the Eagle failed, then the Bear would come. Gohan hated the Bear almost as much as he hated the id dragon. But the Bear was all that was good in Gohan, and he couldn't hate the goodness in him, or the id dragon would win, and Gohan disliked the id dragon even more.

Such was the state of the mental battle that Gohan constantly waged with himself. If he could just figure out **how** Videl knew to come to him to help him, then maybe he could figure out why she resembled the Eagle so much, and then he wouldn't have to depend on her so much. She never seemed to mind, though, and she continued to find him when he needed her.

He intended to find out how she knew these things. He'd read fictional stories of people who had formed mental bonds with each other, but he didn't know Videl (or, rather, he hadn't known her) well enough to form a mental bond with her, if they even actually existed. He found it rather hard to believe.

He shook himself from his thoughts as he found happier, less confusing things to focus on. The woman left him alone largely, and his Daddy had stopped drinking altogether. That made Gohan so happy he often didn't know what to do with all the glowing feelings inside of him and would seek out his father and latch himself to him until the glowing receded into its proper place.

How it knew where its proper place was, Gohan didn't know. His mind, in the absence of The Fog, was still just a barren landscape of nothing. Things were starting to make themselves known on the landscape, but there was no organization whatsoever.

He'd have to fix that as well.

"Hey, son," Goku said, catching Gohan's attention.

"Hi, Daddy," Gohan replied with a smile. "Is there something you needed?"

"Not really, I just wanted to ask how you've been lately. We don't talk much any more, not since Miss Videl and your friend Matt started coming over more often." Gohan narrowed his eyes and looked away from Goku so that Goku couldn't see his face. Against his will, Gohan thought, 'Daddy isn't going to become like the woman, is he?' He didn't think that the Bear and the Eagle combined would be able to keep the id dragon at bay if that happened.

At the thought of the id dragon, it gave a lazy yawn in the black depths before returning to its slumber. Gohan closed his eyes and shook the bad thoughts away, and looked at his dad again. "I'm all right, Daddy."

"Are you sure, Gohan? Because I wanted to talk to you about…about your mother." Gohan stiffened, then forced himself to relax. 'The woman, the woman, the woman,' he repeated to himself.

"All right, Daddy. What about her?" he asked, when he felt his voice wouldn't convey any of the anger he felt toward her.

"She's going to…well," Goku trailed off, and frowned. "She's said that she's going to try and file for a divorce, since you don't seem to need or want her around."

'Good riddance,' Gohan thought, and felt the id dragon give a contented purr of agreement. He **really** needed to figure out how to keep the id dragon contained as it had been when The Fog had still been around. "Do you think it'll work, Daddy?" he asked, and Goku nodded, though his eyes were troubled. "Daddy, what's wrong?" Gohan asked, concerned.

"I do still love your mother, Gohan," Goku said finally. "I'm tired of her constant insults and commands, and these past few days with her away visiting her father have been wonderful. But…we can't just cut her out of our lives."

'Speak for yourself,' Gohan thought dubiously, yet he remained silent. He'd talked with Matt about it for a long time, and they had come to the conclusion that Gohan honestly could survive without the woman.

Almost as though to think of Matt had been to summon him, a knock sounded at the door. Goku looked toward the door, then said, "That must be Matt, come to escort you to school." He gave Gohan a hug and said, "I'll see you later today, then, son. Have a good day at school."

Gohan nodded and got his things together before opening the door to find Matt standing there waiting for him, like he'd taken to doing every morning for school. Matt waited for Gohan to close the door before he said, "Tennis practice is cancelled for today."

"What?" Gohan was mildly shocked, especially because neither Coach nor Dolby had told him that they'd been planning to cancel practice. "Why?"

"I don't know," Matt replied with a shrug. "They called me and told me because they couldn't reach you." Gohan made a mental note to ask his father for a cell phone for his birthday. "But it's cancelled for today."

"Do you think Mariya-sensei will let us have an impromptu meeting today, then?" Gohan asked. Matt shrugged again, and they walked in silence the way to school.

Gohan walked into homeroom, intending to ask Mr. Dolby about the cancelled practice, only to find a substitute sitting behind Mr. Dolby's desk. The substitute introduced himself as "Mr. Sir", to assorted giggles and snickers from the class. Gohan, for his part, settled for raising an eyebrow.

Just as the bell rang, the attacker walked into the classroom, and Gohan had to hunch over at his desk. The attacker noticed the motion and smirked as he walked around the classroom in a roundabout fashion, smacking Gohan in the back of the head "accidentally" as he headed toward the substitute, who was asking the attacker why he was late.

As he'd hit Gohan, he'd whispered, "Why you cowering, you baby? Scared that I might hit you with a bat again?" It had taken Gohan all of his self-control to keep from showing the attacker one of the latest techniques Mariya-sensei had taught him. Even then, it was a close thing, and Gohan could feel the id dragon coursing through his blood at the provocation, yearning to be entirely in control, demanding revenge on the attacker. Commanding it.

Gohan shook only slightly as he remained hunched over at his desk, looking for **something** to keep the id dragon from taking over, and found in the black depths something that glinted like dull silver. He touched it with a fingertip, and shuddered as it repelled him strongly. He realized that it was his determination, hidden deep in the black depths, but always there. He suspected it was from there that the id dragon, the Bear, and the Eagle all came.

But then the id dragon grew tired of fighting to be let loose, and retreated back into the black depths. Gohan slumped as he let out a tiny sigh, and picked up his head to look at the substitute. He found that he was sweating, as though the heat from the id dragon had gone straight to his body temperature, raising it until he felt like he was burning from the inside out.

He shook his head, and let out cool breaths on his hands and forearms, sighing in the relief that the action presented. He thought that the steel in the black depths would need to be used more often. That might be what he used to keep the id dragon contained, rather than being its source.

He didn't know whether homeroom had lasted longer than it should, but, finally, the bell rang, and he moved from his desk to go to Spanish class. He was the first one there, and Sra. Filcure smiled at him as he walked in.

"Buenos dias, señor, ¿cómo estás?" (1)

"Estoy bien, señora," (2) Gohan replied, almost without thinking. He caught himself, though, and smiled at Sra. Filcure, who returned the smile. Apparently, nearly four weeks of speaking in nothing but Spanish had had its effects on Gohan without him realizing it. "¿Cómo está usted, señora?" (3) he asked.

"Estoy bien tambien, señor, gracias," (4) Sra. Filcure replied, the smile widening.

'Maybe I can use my "newfound" ability to speak Spanish passably to get that extra credit,' Gohan thought. No one had yet managed to translate the entire thing, although a few students had gotten extremely close. Sra. Filcure, however, was very particular about the translation, and as such, the message was still undeciphered, and therefore was still a source of possible extra credit.

"Señora, ¿puede ayudarme traducir estos conjugaciones verbales?" (5) he asked, proffering a list of words to her. She took the list and looked at it for a few seconds, before she looked up at him with a questioning look.

"Señor, estos verbos son en la tiempo subjuntivo. Debes usarlos con frases como 'espero que' o cuando dando mandates que no sabes será seguido." (6) Sra. Filcure said, and Gohan gave her a sweet smile.

"Muchas gracias, señora," (7) he said as more students started to trickle in. "And now I know enough to translate the extra credit," he said, switching to English. Sra. Filcure blinked, then smiled.

"Whenever you are ready, señor," she said, and Gohan nodded and waited until all the students had been seated. Once the bell rang, he switched to Spanish as he raised his hand.

"Señora, quiero traducir el 'extra credit'," (8) he said, and Sra. Filcure looked at him as the other students did and nodded. Gohan looked at the message on the board, and then spoke. "Pienso que dice, 'Welcome to Spanish class. My name is Mrs. Filcure, and I hope that you all will learn to speak Spanish as easily as I do, or a little'. ¿Tengo razón?" (9)

Sra. Filcure smiled and nodded and made a mark in her grade book. Gohan smiled, feeling supremely contented with himself.

The rest of the day passed much in the same fashion, with minimal trouble from the leader, the instigator, the attacker, or the daughter. 'Thank Kami for small favors,' Gohan thought as he sat at the lunch table with Matt and Videl. It was then that he noticed that Jack was still not at school. He frowned as he sat down, and Videl noticed his expression.

"Gohan, what's up?" she asked.

"Where's Jack?" Gohan answered her question with a question of his own. Videl and Matt looked at each other, and Matt shrugged.

"No one knows but the coaches, Gohan," Matt said. "All I know is that they told us that it was a family emergency. I haven't the slightest idea what that entails." Gohan's frown remained firmly in place.

"It doesn't make much sense for him to come to school for two days, and then be gone for almost four weeks. What sort of emergency would cause him to be gone that long?"

"No one but him knows," Videl said, and Gohan sighed. He really missed Jack, and felt his absence every time he went to tennis practice and Jack wasn't there.

The end of the day came, and Gohan got a message during gym that there would be a meeting of the Triple Tenet Club, and that it was important that every member showed up. Curiosity captured, Gohan went to the meeting room to find Videl, Emily, Matt, and Greg there with Mariya-sensei.

"Gohan-kun, welcome," Mariya said, and Gohan gave a small bow. "Now that you are here and fully healed, perhaps it is time for a test of the club's skills. Gohan-kun, I would like you to fight against me. The Bears and the Eagles will match up against each other, as the best way to test one's skill is against someone with the same skill. You may take whatever time you need to prepare, my students."

After they all felt themselves sufficiently prepared, Matt and Emily paired together, and so did Videl and Greg. Gohan had something he wanted to ask Mariya. "Mariya-sensei, does that mean that you follow the Dragon, since you're going to fight me?" Gohan asked, and Mariya nodded.

"That's why I've been able to teach you, and why you've managed, without actually fighting, to ascend from the level of Hydra to the level of Leviathan."

"Are you the highest level, then, Mariya-sensei?"

"Yes," she replied with a nod. "I am at the level of Mushussu." Gohan nodded, and looked to Emily and Matt, the Bears.

Emily had managed to ascend from the rank of Callisto to that of Jambhuvantha, while Matt was having troubles getting into the Bear's mindset, thus remaining at Callisto.

Videl and Greg were another matter. Videl seemed to have such an affinity for the style of the Eagle that she was considered by Mariya-sensei to be Perun. Greg also seemed to be gifted with an affinity for the Eagle, though he had only managed to be promoted from Yatagerasu to Geruda.

Gohan bowed to Mariya, who returned the bow, and they each assumed their preferred stance.

Gohan's favored stance consisted of leaning back slightly with his knees slightly bent, with his right hand in front of his face with his index and middle fingers pointing behind him. His left hand also had his index and middle fingers pointing out, yet he held his left hand down near his waist, pointing to the right. His stance was highly defensive.

Mariya, for her part, assumed a stance worthy of a master of the Dragon style of her martial arts discipline. Both her index and middle fingers pointed out, like Gohan's did, yet her hands were positioned much more aggressively. She also leaned backward like Gohan did, as well. The only real difference laid in their hands. Mariya's right hand she held straight out in front of her, two fingers pointing downward. Her left hand she held down at her waist, palm upward, fingers pointing toward Gohan.

"Ready," she said, her voice steady. Gohan nodded, and so did the others, though they were facing each other. "Begin," Mariya-sensei said, and pushed forward with her foot.

Immediately, her right hand came upward, poised over her head as her left hand shot out. Gohan batted her left hand out of the way and ducked, before surging upward with both hands aimed at her midsection. Her right hand descended, going in between Gohan's hands and spreading them farther apart, giving her enough of an opportunity to jump backward.

Gohan instantly followed, switching from defense to offense. He slid feet first along the ground, making Mariya jump over him. 'Good thing my back is healed,' Gohan thought as he pushed himself up so that he was standing to defend against Mariya's next strike.

They backed a small way from each other, circling around as they tried to find a weakness. Any weakness. "You're better at this than I'd thought you'd be, Gohan-kun," Mariya said, and Gohan nodded in acknowledgement of the compliment before he rushed forward again, aiming inside Mariya's defenses.

Mariya seemed to flow as she ducked and twirled, neatly dodging to the side of Gohan as he ran forward. She ended up behind him, and she prodded the center of his back with two fingers, sending him tipping forward as he tried to regain his balance.

He tripped, and managed to brace his fall with both hands. He ended up doing a handstand as Mariya dipped and spun, aiming her foot for his hands. Gohan pushed off the ground, flipping himself back over again, bringing his foot to connect with Mariya as his whole body curved.

Mariya's hands came up in an X shape as she blocked Gohan's kick. He didn't let that slow him down, however, and swung his other leg around to kick Mariya in the side, sending her skidding lightly to one side. He lacked the power to put behind his swings to really do any damage, but his hits weren't as light as feathers.

Mariya stood slowly, and said, "You get second hit." Gohan started, then realized that, technically, Mariya prodding him in the back would be considered the first hit. Gohan nodded and assumed his stance again, and Mariya did the same.

They waited, and both moved at the same time. Mariya aimed low, Gohan aimed high. They collided, Gohan's foot connecting with Mariya's shoulder, Mariya's fist hitting Gohan's stomach. They stayed together for a second, then Mariya pushed and they sprang apart. Mariya instantly went on the offensive, causing Gohan to perform repeated backhand springs to keep moving away from Mariya's fists and feet.

Finally, Mariya stopped moving, just as Gohan found himself backed up against one of the walls. Videl, Greg, Matt, and Emily had long since stopped their own battles to watch the clash of two Dragons. Mariya and Gohan looked at each other for a long time, then they both bowed.

"You are good at entering the mindset of the Dragon, Gohan-kun," Mariya said, and Gohan smiled for the first time since the meeting had begun.

"Thank you, Mariya-sensei. You're still far better than I am, however."

"Only because I am the instructor." Gohan shook his head and stretched, and Mariya shifted her focus to the others, who simply watched her. "Why did you stop testing each other?" Mariya asked.

"We could feel the heat practically radiating from the two of you," Videl said, though she was looking more closely at Gohan than at Mariya. "Was that supposed to happen?"

"If you believe that it can," Mariya replied. "It is a mindset, just as the tenets of my discipline are. If you believe you can feel the effects, then you will. Those who pay attention to the Bears as they fight may smell the forest, and those who watch the Eagles may feel the wind from their wings pass over their faces."

"But why was the Dragon sensation so overwhelming?" Emily asked.

"Because the Dragon is the most powerful of the three animals," Mariya replied patiently. "They control fire, the single most powerful and destructive element of the three. Bears are Earth, and they are steadfast. Eagles are Air, and they are graceful. Dragons, however, are Fire, and they are beautiful, deadly, and devastating to the senses, just as fire is."

Her words left the five 12-year-olds with a lot to think about, and think they did. 'Fire seems to be showing itself everywhere,' Gohan thought to himself as he slumped against the wall. 'The id dragon is full of fire, the martial arts style I'm learning is full of fire, and fire threatens to consume me, if I'd let it.

'I need a way to tame the fire.'

-TBC-

**A/N II: **All right. The levels are listed from lowest to highest.

- The Dragon tenet has three levels:  
Hydra (Greek) - the multi-headed serpentine creature Hercules fought as one of his Twelve Labors, with an immortal head that grew back everytime it was cut off.  
Leviathan (Hebrew) - a demonic dragon that rules the waters.  
Mushussu (Babylonian) - a dragon found at the Ishtar Gate.  
- The Bear tenet has three levels:  
Callisto (Greek) - a nymph of Artemis that was turned into a bear and placed among the stars.  
Jambhuvantha (Hindu) - the Great Bear, supposedly having traveled the earth 12 times and being extremely knowledgeable in war and other matters.  
Nanook (Inuit) - master of bears who decided if hunters had followed all applicable taboos and whether they would be successful in hunting nears.  
- The Eagle tenet has three levels:  
Yatagerasu (Japanese) - tripedal (three-legged) raven belonging to the sun goddess Amaterasu.  
Geruda (Hindu) - Vishnu's mount.  
Perun (Slavic) - the highest deity in the Slavic pantheon.

There's a lot more detail to each than that, as I only gave the bare essential information. If you want, you can look up what I've mentioned if it sparks your interest.

Translation(s):  
(1) - "Good morning, sir, how are you?"  
(2) - "I am well, ma'am."  
(3) - "How are you, ma'am?"  
(4) - "I am well, too, sir, thank you."  
(5) - "Ma'am, can you help me translate these verb conjugations?"  
(6) - "Sir, these are verbs in the subjunctive tense. You should use them with phrases like 'espero que' or when giving commands that you don't know will be followed."  
(7) - "Thank you very much, ma'am."  
(8) - "Ma'am, I want to translate the 'extra credit'."  
(9) - "I think it says...'...'...Am I right?"

If I've made any mistakes with translating, I know that the last time, someone anonymous was kind enough to point it out to me. If I made a mistake, if someone would let me know, I'd be grateful, so that I can fix it, since my Spanish is woefully rusty.

And that's all the extra information for this chapter, I believe. So, review, please. :D

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	8. Intermission: Pictures Frozen in Time

**A/N: **And here is a chapter that's really a bunch of scenes from all over the place. I couldn't figure out where else to put these, so they're going in this Intermission. This shouldn't happen too often, but it might, especially if the story continues to buck and twist and change itself around like it's so fond of doing.

Anyway, this provides some background on Avery, Michelle, James, and Jenifyr. They're not static characters, though it'd be much easier if they were. Ah well. Blasted story and its unforeseen complexities.

These scenes are mostly backstory and sidenotes, but they do provide a glimpse of what's to come later on in the story. The fifth scene makes this update Not A Very Nice Update, but the thread it drops won't be tied up immediately.

The title is part of a lyric from "What's Left Of Me" by Nick Lachey.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Any unrecognizable characters, the Trouble Force Four, and all their relations are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Intermission: Pictures Frozen in Time Are Becoming Clearer**

Avery Ratcliffe stretched his body out as far as it would go, then cracked his neck and shrugged his shoulders a couple of times. His life was good, as far as he was concerned. He had both his parents, and they'd managed to at least secure him a position on the football team. He was fairly sure he could take it from there.

He yawned, then decided to go and take a shower. He sighed as the hot water sprinkled against his skin, soothing him as he stared into space. When he was finished, he dried himself off and wrapped the towel around his waist before going to see whether his parents were home.

He caught no sign of Avery Ratcliffe, Sr., nor did he see Beatrice Ratcliffe. He let out a small sigh and ran a hand through his still-damp hair. 'I suppose I'll call Michelle and see what she's up to,' he thought as he headed off to find the headset.

He found it with little trouble. It was in the living room. However, so was his aunt.

Avery stopped still, shocked and uncaring enough to hide it. 'Why is she here?' he asked himself, then told himself it didn't matter. With a mental and physical shrug, he put his aunt Isobel out of his mind and dialed Michelle's number.

She picked up almost on the first ring, and her voice sounded…odd. "What is it, Avery?"

Avery frowned. "Did I call at a bad time?"

There was a sigh. "No, it isn't you," Michelle said finally, then Avery heard the phone move through the air, and then he could hear a loud male voice yelling something incoherent.

"Who is that?"

"Our uncle," Michelle said, exasperated. Avery got the feeling she was more irritated with their uncle than she was with him. "Can I come over there?"

"Yeah, sure. Aunt Isobel's over here, but - "

"That's where she is?" Michelle cut across him. Then, she let out a loud sigh. "I'm definitely coming over. I'll be there in a few minutes, okay?"

Avery murmured in assent, and then hung up the phone before going to get dressed. Hopefully, he was going to have a very…enlightening chat with his cousin.

* * *

Michelle brushed her long brown hair one last time, and idly decided that she was going to have to bug her dad to let her get blonde highlights. Because straight brown hair is boring, and if there was one thing Michelle Belafonte was **not**, it was boring.

Another reason she decided to stop brushing her hair and leave was because she heard her "beloved" uncle yelling even more loudly than he'd been before. 'I swear, you'd think he'd learn that yelling doesn't get him everything he wants in life,' Michelle thought scornfully. 'Kami knows it didn't keep him his wife, if what he's yelling has anything to do with Aunt Isobel.'

She left her room quietly, slipped her favorite flats on, and walked out the front door, intending to visit her favorite cousin, Avery Ratcliffe. 'Hopefully, we can find out what on earth Aunt Isobel is doing over there,' she thought as she walked.

She got to Avery's house quickly and knocked on the door. He opened it almost immediately, and stepped back to let Michelle in. "What's going on?" he asked quietly.

"Why are you being so quiet?" Michelle asked, and was promptly shushed by Avery.

"Aunt Isobel's sleeping on the couch," he said softly. "Come on, we'll go talk in my room. Hopefully, you can shed more light on this."

When they were in Avery's room, Michelle sighed. "How much do you know about Aunt Isobel?" she asked.

"Only that she's Mom's sister," Avery replied. "I don't know what she's doing here, though, when our uncle is at your house."

"I'm pretty sure they had a fight," Michelle said, shaking her head. "You know how he gets. I think this time was just worse than all the other ones." Indeed, they both knew.

Isobel Belafonte wasn't a bad woman. She just had…questionable taste in men. No one knew how she'd managed to keep the man she had now, but, from what Michelle knew, they'd been together since before she and Avery were born. So she considered him their uncle. She also knew that Aunt Isobel had never seemed comfortable with her Aunt Beatrice. But, apparently, her discomfort with her boyfriend trumped her discomfort with Beatrice, because, well, here she was.

"Is Aunt Beatrice okay with Aunt Isobel being here?" Michelle asked, and Avery shrugged.

"I don't know. She and Dad were both gone when I went into the living room and found Aunt Isobel. What are we supposed to do? I don't think she'd appreciate us telling our uncle where she is." Michelle nodded in agreement. "So what do we do?"

"I don't think there's much we can do, Avery, honestly," she replied. "We can tell my mom and dad where Aunt Isobel is, but I think they'd probably tell our uncle."

Avery frowned, and Michelle frowned as well. This was going to be a lot harder than they'd thought, at least until they could talk to Avery's parents, and maybe even Aunt Isobel as well.

* * *

James held up his bat to study it better. He'd done something to knock off its balance when he'd hit the Slob with it, and now it felt different in his hands. He couldn't figure out what was so different, though.

'Stupid Slob, messing up my good baseball bat,' he thought, with a derisive snort. It wasn't like Gohan was good for anything else but making things worse for James Pickett. James put the bat down, then decided to go chat with his grandparents, since he hadn't had a chance to talk to them yet.

He lived with his grandparents, Maurice and Amelia Pickett, because his parents were, for all he knew, dead. If not dead, then they were off living their adventurous lives. Lives that James just had not fit in. So his grandparents had taken him in, Kami love them. He always tried to make sure that he talked to them about whatever they wanted to talk about, because otherwise he wasn't really living with them, just living off of them.

"Grampa? Gran?" James called. He went to look in the sitting room, but they weren't in their matching rocking chairs. He frowned. They were usually there, chatting amongst themselves or simply ruminating. To find the chairs empty was odd.

"Gran? Grampa? Where are you?" he called out again. Just when he was really beginning to get worried, he heard a soft voice reply.

"We're in the bedroom, James," came his grandfather's voice. James sighed and went to their bedroom, and, sure enough, there they were. His grandmother appeared to be asleep, but Maurice was wide awake. "Is something wrong?" he asked James. "You were calling out like something was really bothering you."

"I just didn't know where you were, that's all," James replied. "You weren't in the sitting room, and I couldn't hear a reply the first time I called for you."

Maurice nodded, then said, "Well, what did you need?"

"I just wanted to talk, that's all," James responded. "Have you had anything interesting happen to you in the past couple of days?"

"Not really," Maurice said. "When you get to be as old as me, your life gets rather boring." James smiled. The way his grandparents acted sometimes, he found it hard to believe that they were really as old as they said they were. "What about you, James?"

The Slob's face flashed across James's mind, but he shook his head. "I guess I'm not old enough to have a really interesting life," he said, wresting a smile from his grandfather's lips.

"Well, what about your friends? Michelle, Avery, and…" he trailed off, appearing to think, a faint line appearing in his forehead. Finally, he snapped his fingers and said, "Jenifyr. That's her name. How are they doing?"

"They're doing all right," James said. "Jenifyr's been really whiny since Avery accidentally punched her in the stomach, but - "

"Accidentally punched her in the stomach?" Maurice frowned. "What on earth were they doing?"

James felt his heart speed up. No matter how much the Slob deserved it, he knew his grandparents would never agree. "They were just playing, Grampa. Avery tripped, and Jenifyr tried to catch him, but he was too big." Maurice didn't appear to believe that, so James said hurriedly, "I really need to go, Grampa. I love you."

He turned and bolted from the room, he didn't hear Maurice's soft reply of, "Love you too, James…even when you've been doing something you don't think I'd be proud of."

* * *

Jenifyr frowned in the mirror. She lifted up her shirt again, and it was still there. That nasty, ugly bruise that stupid Gohan had made Avery give to her when he'd punched her. Since then, she'd been too busy ignoring the tenderness around the area to really make Gohan pay for what he'd done.

But the pain was starting to go away, and Jenifyr gave a tiny little smile that she knew was not a nice one. 'I'll get the Klutz back for making me get this ugly bruise. Maybe I'll even give him one.' She knew she probably wouldn't be able to hit Gohan herself, since the last time she'd tried, he'd stopped her in her tracks. Plus, with all that tennis practice he'd been doing, his balance, reflexes, and coordination were probably all better than they'd ever been.

"If they were all that great to begin with," she muttered, then uttered a small, mean laugh. "Just because I can't hit him doesn't mean that he'll get away with giving me this gross bruise. It's all his fault, stupid klutz."

She started to form a plan in her mind, and decided to share it with James. He'd probably be more than happy to help Jenifyr out, since they were practically partners-in-crime. Not that they ever committed any crimes. Everything they did to people was no less than what those people deserved. And the Klutz would be no exception.

She picked up her pink, rhinestone-studded cell phone and punched in James's home number. She always bugged him to get a cell phone, but he always told her that he thought it would bother his grandparents. Sighing, she waited as the phone started to ring on James's end.

It had almost gone to the answering machine before she heard the phone get picked up. "Hello?" a voice asked that sounded seriously scared and wary. Jenifyr tilted her head to one side, and said, "James? That you?"

"Jenifyr?" Immediately, James's voice relaxed. "Yeah. Yeah, it's me. What's up?"

"I have a plan for our favorite Clumsy Slob," Jenifyr said, with an evil sort of glee. "You want in? It's a real good one."

She could hear James hesitate, and frowned. He was acting differently than he normally did. "Er, Jenifyr, don't you think that…maybe we've done enough to Gohan? For now, anyway?"

'Now I **know** that something is up with him,' Jenifyr thought decisively. "Is that a no, James?"

"Um…" James took a long time in answering, and Jenifyr nearly hung up. She believed she knew what his answer would be. Finally, James's voice came back across the line. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm in."

Jenifyr smiled her not very nice smile again as she hung up. 'Gohan won't know what hit him. Well, yes he will.'

* * *

She made sure to put up her blonde hair under the cap so it wouldn't get in the way. 'I'm going to get him back for betraying me,' she thought with a dark smirk. 'He won't know what hit him.'

She began to walk down the street, making little noise in her sneakers. For a long time, she'd been trying to figure out a way to get him back for hurting her like he had. Then, a couple of days ago, she'd found out the perfect way to get revenge.

She turned into the alleyway and headed for the back of it, where she could just barely make out a shape standing there. He had come after all. He really was more desperate than she was. She held out a wad of cash and a photograph. It had been easy enough to get the photo, since he had made himself rather famous, just like her target.

"This will help me get Isobel back?" the man asked in a broken voice. It almost tugged at her heartstrings…almost.

She nodded, knowing full well that she was lying through her teeth. "Yes. If you do this for me, I will make sure that you get Isobel back with you, where she belongs. All you have to do is get the child in the picture. I'll take care of the rest."

"If it'll get me Isobel," the man whispered in the dark. "I miss her so much."

"I know," she murmured in a fake sentimental voice, patting him lightly on the arm. "I know."

'I also know that this plan can't fail. Neither of them will see what's coming. It's a pity I had to include such a young child in this, but it's in the name of revenge.'

-TBC-

**A/N II: **Stupid story that keeps getting less and less pleasant. Anyway, review, please.

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	9. And We Can Breathe Again

**A/N:** Thank you for the reviews. I promise, there are reasons that I've "humanized" the four bullies. They won't come to be known for a while yet, although from here on, I'll be dropping more and more hints. If you're sharp, you may find them and realize them for what they are and what they reveal.

This chapter is one in which I've done something that I don't normally do often. That is, outline one scene from two different people's perspectives. Gohan and Videl are the focus of this chapter, and I wrote it that way somewhat on purpose. The chapter morphed itself partway through me writing it, and now we'll all just have to go along with the new direction the story's going in from here.

Enjoy the chapter.

The title comes from part of a lyric from "Broken" by Seether and Amy Lee of Evanescence.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 7 - And We Can Breathe Again**

It wasn't until Thanksgiving vacation came around that Gohan managed to find a way to tame the fire. It should have been no surprise to him that Videl was the one who helped him.

"You know, Gohan," she said idly as they were sparring - Mariya had decided that the best way for them to continue growing was to encounter those who were trained in the different focuses of her discipline - causing Gohan to drop his guard. She jabbed at his solar plexus, and out of reflex he twisted to one side and thrust his fist forward, intending to catch her in the xiphoid process. She jumped backward, performing a backhand spring and landing in her favored stance.

"Yes, Videl?" Gohan inquired as he assumed the same stance Mariya had assumed the first time they'd fought a couple of months prior.

"You have a lot of determination," Videl said in that same idle tone, as though she were discussing the weather.

Gohan blocked her next strike as he pondered that. 'Do I have a lot of determination?' He supposed he must, since he'd managed to keep the id dragon at bay as well as he had. He also had managed to keep the Bear and Eagle in their proper places when necessary. Additionally, the woman, leader, instigator, attacker, and daughter had all stayed unharmed.

Gohan had kept the id dragon and the others at bay by holding them under the steel determination he'd found in the black depths. He simply imagined it stretching over them, pressing down like an immovable blanket made of his will to keep them suppressed.

Yet that wasn't enough. The id dragon still managed to find ways around the determination, and then the Eagle would have to follow, and the Bear would have to be free as well, in case the Eagle failed.

Gohan ducked under a high roundhouse kick from Videl and continued the pivot in a low roundhouse that caught Videl's foot and dragged it out from under her. Before she could react, she was on her back on the ground with Gohan's foot on her midsection.

* * *

Videl had the odd experience of falling to Gohan when he was working with the dragon in him instead of fighting against it. It looked as though he radiated a thin red aura around him, making his eyes glint dangerously as the deep red light reflected off of them.

Maybe that was just Videl who saw it then. Matt, Emily, and Greg didn't act as though they noticed anything. Then again, maybe it was that Mariya-sensei was somehow blocking their perception of Gohan and Videl. She was an odd one, Mariya Stone.

'But she isn't the one dealing with three formidable animals constantly battling for control of his mind,' Videl thought, with a touch of condescension. Though she'd never tell Mariya-sensei, she also thought that Mariya would never be able to handle the conflict as well as Gohan had been.

'But even now, Gohan isn't handling it as well as he can,' Videl thought next, and that thought brought her back out of her thoughts to find that Gohan's foot had moved and he was holding his hand out to help Videl stand.

"All right, my students," Mariya said, clapping her hands once to get their attention. "You have sparred well today," she continued, catching Gohan in a glance that, to Videl, lasted a little longer than it should have. There didn't seem to be any hostility or anything other than acknowledgement in the glance, though. 'She must just be wishing to tell Gohan in less-than-obvious ways of her pride in him,' Videl surmised. Even with that reasoning, there was no explanation for the calculating look in Mariya-sensei's eyes as her focus shifted from Gohan to Videl.

Their eyes met, and Mariya's eyes widened slightly in what could easily be identified as surprise. However, for the strangest reason, Videl felt…challenged by their eye contact. Mariya seemed to be saying, "Are you suspicious of me, little girl? Well, look all you want, but you won't find anything. I'm entirely innocent."

Videl didn't buy that for a second, and let her eyes narrow slightly to get her intent across to Mariya-sensei. 'I won't let Gohan be pushed around by you,' she thought. 'Not when he's had enough of that his whole life as it stands.'

It was true that Videl had only known Gohan since kindergarten. But she'd done a lot of watching him that first year. And from what she'd seen, Gohan had already been far too used to being put down. Judging from his reactions to Avery and the others when they all were **five**, of all ages, experience had taught Gohan to take the hits silently and stoically, because crying wouldn't do him any good.

When Videl had become old enough to understand what that meant, her heart had nearly broken on Gohan's behalf. Though he had never shown any bruises or evidence of physical abuse, his eyes showed the scars of other sorts of abuse that were every bit as damaging, if less obvious.

However, in those eyes she had also seen a fierce determination, and a fragility that she never would've been able to guess at had she not watched him as closely as she had for the seven years she'd known him. She still didn't even know why he'd always held such a fascination for her, but she knew that he did. And when she'd learned what his family and life had been like, she determined that she would become his friend.

'No one should have to stand alone,' Videl thought. It was then that she realized that she remembered what had happened at the end of their first day of kindergarten. Gohan had gone running to his father, who had picked him up and started comforting him. And Gohan had been crying. Not just crying, but really sobbing. Granted, he was five at the time, but Videl had a suspicion that Gohan had somewhere in his life been forced to grow up beyond his years.

She was just glad he'd had his father there for him. If he'd had no parents at all, then he probably wouldn't have lasted to the seventh grade. The people in her age group could be that cruel, Videl knew. She'd never been a victim of it, simply because she didn't talk to too many people, and those she did talk to tended to be slightly outside of society as it stood.

"Videl!" Videl blinked. Gohan had apparently been calling her name for a good while now, and she'd been too deeply entrenched in her own thoughts - 'Again.' - to hear him. She gave her head a little shake and asked him, "What is it, Gohan?"

"Well, Videl, you were talking about my determination, and then you got lost in your thoughts while our battle continued," Gohan responded, sounding infinitely patient. "Then, Mariya-sensei halted us, and you got caught up in some sort of staring contest. Then everyone left, except you. You were still here."

"Why are you here as well, then?" Videl asked, looking around to ascertain that, indeed, everyone else had left.

"I couldn't leave you here alone," Gohan replied, giving Videl a small smile. She saw his smile, or, at least, a **true** smile, so rarely that it always gave her a tiny thrill to see it. He really did have a nice smile. And the fact that she was the one who'd managed to put a real smile on his face spoke worlds of what he thought of her. At least, that's what Videl hoped.

She gave her head a tiny shake again, and began to outline her idea that she'd formed on the basis of Gohan's determination.

* * *

"Your determination is great," Videl said, and Gohan nodded. 'She already told me that,' he thought, but didn't interrupt. He'd learned in the almost four months that he and Videl had been friends that whenever she said something she thought was important, it usually was.

"Have you ever thought of using your determination to hold the dragon and eagle and bear?" Videl asked, and Gohan blinked before he nodded.

"I already do," he said, and continued in the face of Videl's raised eyebrows. "I use it to weight them down. And as long as I don't think about…them," he paused at the oblique thought of the woman and the others, and his voice wavered as he kept speaking. "I don't have an issue with any of them."

"But what happens when you do ?" Videl asked, and Gohan closed his eyes.

"Don't make me think of them, please," he said, his tone nearly a beg, but Videl shook her head. 'She's one to talk about great determination,' Gohan thought grudgingly.

"Gohan, if you don't do something, then you'll always be fighting," Videl said quietly. "Have you ever thought of using your determination in a different way?"

"Different how?" Gohan asked, his curiosity piqued.

"Different like instead of suppressing them, what about containing them?" Videl inquired, and Gohan blinked again.

"Containing them? Like, with cages?" He knew that wasn't what she meant even as she shook her head.

"Not exactly. There can be holes in the container, if you want, but you'd have to be careful that they didn't leak out those holes. No, I mean like…boxes. Boxes that you use to contain them and maybe even trick them."

"Trick them into not coming out?" Videl nodded, and Gohan thought, 'That makes sense. But the question is, how do I trick them?' He asked Videl this same question, and she appeared to think for a while.

"Well, the dragon is the only one really giving you a problem, right?" Videl asked, and Gohan nodded. "So really, you wouldn't need to contain the others, just the dragon."

"Right, because then the others wouldn't have a reason to come out," Gohan said, already thinking of ways to keep the id dragon contained.

"Is it possible to distract the dragon?" Videl asked, and Gohan shook his head.

"I don't think so," he said distractedly. "Not unless it's capable of being distracted with itself." Just like that, he had an idea. Looking at Videl, he thought he could see that she'd had the same idea.

At the same time, they both said, "Make a box of mirrors." Gohan nodded and closed his eyes, delving into his mind.

To do this, he realized he'd need to deliberately think of someone he'd rather not. Somewhat to his surprise, the face that came to mind was Jenifyr. She hadn't really done anything that bad to him, other than give him nasty glares. But the id dragon associated her with Avery, James, Michelle, and ChiChi, and therefore, her face was enough.

Her face materialized in the black depths, and the id dragon came roaring toward the image, spitting fire. Gohan dove past the id dragon into the black depths, searching for that dull glint he'd found the last time he'd gone so far into his mind.

He looked around, unseeing, until suddenly, a glint caught his eye. He snapped his head in that direction and found the band of steel he'd been looking for.

A half-smile formed on his face as he ripped a piece from it. It was a lot like a ribbon, and he imagined the bottom side of it becoming reflective. He looked at it and saw himself in the bottom, and was satisfied. He directed it to wrap around the id dragon.

The ribbon did what he asked, although it did it somewhat differently than he'd intended. It flew in a wide arc around the id dragon, then wrapped back around and arced around another way, then came back again, wrapping itself around and around the id dragon in what was quickly looking like a ball of ribbon.

By the time the id dragon was able to ignore the image of Jenifyr enough to realize what was happening, it was already too late. The determination connected its end to a random point on the ball that had formed, and then the whole thing shimmered, and Gohan found that he could see into it, and could see the id dragon twisting and undulating, trying to find a weak point in the ball to get out.

It couldn't find one, the way Gohan had known it wouldn't be able to, and then the id dragon seemed to look right at Gohan, startling him. But then the id dragon fell still, and Gohan realized that it had seen its reflection. The ball worked a lot like a one-way mirror, allowing Gohan to see the id dragon, and the id dragon to see only itself all around, no matter where it went.

Satisfied, Gohan retreated from the black depths to stand on the wasteland that The Fog had hidden, and found himself face-to-face with the Bear. The Eagle had seen what he was doing and had approved, since it had a container of its own in the sky. The Bear, however, was a different story.

It looked him in the eyes, all shining light, and Gohan found that the Bear was demanding a container like the id dragon and the Eagle.

"Why would you want a container?" Gohan asked the Bear, and it tilted its head to one side as though to ask why it **wouldn't** want a container.

"**I must be equal to the id dragon and the Eagle,**" it said, and Gohan gave another start as he realized that it could speak. 'Well, of course it can, since it's my mind,' Gohan thought in the next second. 'And even if it weren't, I could still understand it.'

Nodding, Gohan thought about how to answer the Bear's request. Suddenly, a voice that sounded like Videl's said, "Why not give the Bear a place to live like a real bear would have?"

"What do you think?" Gohan asked the Bear. The Bear nodded, and Gohan closed his eyes again. He imagined a cave forming by blasts of water and wind, and felt the ground shifting as it mimicked the picture he imagined.

Finally, he opened his eyes to find a cave opening into the ground. He looked to the Bear, only to find it shaking its head. "What, what's wrong?" Gohan demanded. "I thought you wanted a cave."

"**I desire a place where I, the id dragon, and the Eagle can all co-inhabit,**" the Bear said, and Gohan felt revelation come crashing into his head. A burst of sunlight shone on him suddenly, imitating the light of realization in his thoughts.

"What about a mountain?" Gohan asked. "That way, you can live there, the Eagle can make a nest and roost, and the id dragon would go in the center of the mountain."

"**That would make it akin to a volcano,**" the Bear noted. "**What would happen if the id dragon were to escape its confinement and make the volcano erupt?**"

"I don't intend to allow that to happen," Gohan said determinedly. "The id dragon is watching itself in a mirror constantly, and that should keep it distracted enough so that it won't be able to break out of the ball. What's more, the ball is made of my own determination to keep the id dragon contained. The id dragon is not my master."

The Bear nodded slowly, then said, "**You look fatigued. I will not request that you make the mountain at this time. It constitutes a complete restructure of your mind. You do not have the faculties to deal with such an ordeal as of now. This cave will suffice until you are able to remake your mind. Bring the Eagle Girl with you, as well, when you are able**."

'The Eagle Girl?' Gohan wondered. The next second, he thought, 'Videl. Of course. It can't be anyone else. Her eyes are as blue as the Eagle's, and her style in Mariya-sensei's discipline is that of the Eagle. And, obviously, she's a girl.' Immediately, the question of how Gohan would bring Videl into his mind presented itself, but Gohan didn't worry about that just yet. The Bear had given him time to make a mountain, and he would make use of that time.

He retreated from his mind and opened his eyes to find Videl watching him much like she had ever since their first day of kindergarten. Gohan took a deep breath, and Videl said, "Did it work?"

Letting out his breath, Gohan said, "I think so."

"Test it," Videl said instantly. "Think of them."

Gohan cringed from habit, and brought up thoughts of ChiChi, Avery, James, Michelle, and Jenifyr. 'Which reminds me that I still don't know why the black depths picked Jenifyr to bait the id dragon, as opposed to Avery or ChiChi,' he thought.

He looked at Videl, who had stood, and saw that she was smiling. He frowned in a confused manner, and said, "What's the smile for?"

"Are you thinking about them?" she asked.

Gohan shrugged. "Just Jenifyr, Avery, and my mom," he said. "About how I don't know why Jenifyr was used to bait the dragon instead of Mom or - " he trailed off abruptly.

"Do you feel the dragon or any heat?" Videl asked, though from the smile on her face it was obvious that she could tell that he didn't.

"No, I don't feel anything at all," Gohan said, slightly marveling. "It's really odd." Indeed it was. He'd gotten so used to the id dragon's constant presence and heat that now that he wasn't dealing with it, he felt sort of cold.

But he also felt extraordinarily calm. Like he could breathe and think about the things he really needed to think about, and not have to constantly repress his more…irrational side.

* * *

Gohan smiled at Videl again, and if she'd thought his smile before was nice, then this one was dazzling. It lit up his entire face, and made his eyes twinkle.

Videl realized rather abruptly that she liked seeing Gohan smile. She liked seeing him smile a lot. Maybe if she spent more time with him, she'd get to see him smile like that more often.

She felt a faint spark of attraction toward that idea. She wondered what she could do to get him to smile like that often enough that it would erase the bad aspects of his past. She wondered if his father ever made him smile the way he smiled at her.

-TBC-

**A/N II:** Review, please. Reviews make for happy authors.

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	10. Why is She Calling Now, After So Long?

**A/N:** Happy Thanksgiving, Gohan.

The title is part of a lyric from "Case of the Ex" by Mya.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 8 - Why is She Calling Now, After So Long?**

Gohan brushed his hair, grumbling the entire time. He hadn't really planned on it, but since it was Thanksgiving and Goku had insisted that he invite Matt, George and Harold Dolby, and Videl, Gohan had to look presentable.

He'd expected to spend Thanksgiving alone with his dad, until the previous day, when Goku had told Gohan to find the phone book. "Why, Daddy?" he'd asked.

"Because I want you to invite some of your friends and adults important to you over for Thanksgiving," Goku had said patiently. "I've been trying to think of a way to thank them for looking after you like they have, though no one asked them to. Why not have them over?"

"Is Mom coming?" Gohan had asked quietly, and Goku had flinched.

"I don't think so, Gohan. She's told me that she's spending Thanksgiving with her true family," he had replied. Gohan had thought he was doing a valiant job of hiding how badly that must have hurt him. All Gohan had been able to see as a sign of Goku's distress was a slight tightening of his jaw.

Gohan had decided to ask anyway. "Daddy, why does her not coming bother you so much?"

Goku had flinched again, but to his credit, he'd answered Gohan's question honestly. "Because, despite everything, I still love her. I still care for and worry about her. She's had to deal with her insecurities for a long time."

"Insecurities over what?" Gohan had asked.

"Over you, mostly." Gohan had nodded as though he'd expected this, but Goku had been lost in telling a story, so he hadn't noticed. "It started when you were little. You'd always liked me more, and neither of us knew why. We both spent unbelievable amounts of time on you, but you always seemed to want me, and never your mother. She didn't know what she was doing wrong, and that hurt her. Her problems only grew with time."

"So why didn't she, when I was old enough, make more of an effort?" Gohan had inquired. This had been the question he'd really wondered about asking.

Goku had sighed and shaken his head, and replied, "Because she already thought that you were beyond any sort of reach, and that nothing she could ever do would be enough to make you like her even a small fraction of how much you seemed to like me."

Gohan had frowned and didn't comment further, and had left his father to his thoughts while he'd gone to find the phone book like Goku had asked.

Fast forward one day, and here Gohan was, waiting with his Dad for their guests to show up. Goku had done all the inviting, and had told them to bring a dish that they liked.

For their own part, Goku and Gohan had provided the turkey and stuffing, though Gohan wasn't really a fan of stuffing. They'd also made sweet potatoes with roasted marshmallows, and had made mashed potatoes and homemade turkey gravy. They didn't know what their guests would be bringing, and would have to wait until they arrived to find out.

There was a knock on the door, and Goku turned to Gohan. "You ready, son?" he asked, and Gohan nodded. Goku smiled at him, and Gohan returned the smile, and Goku opened the front door to see Matt standing there, holding a glass dish with aluminum foil over the top. Standing behind him were two people who didn't look at all like Matt. Matt had brown hair and brown eyes, and was built stockily. He'd be able to pack on quite a bit of muscle, if he were interested.

The two people with him looked nothing like him. The man had curly black hair, thick eyebrows, and dark grey eyes, dark as flint. His nose was short and his lips were thin, and he had a thick black beard.

The woman seemed to be the man's complete opposite. She had platinum-blonde hair, pencil-thin eyebrows, a long thin nose, and full lips. Her eyes were grey like the man's, but hers were closer in color to ice than flint.

Goku cleared his throat, and Gohan started. "Gohan," Goku said pleasantly. "Aren't you going to show Matt where he can place the dish he's brought?"

Gohan nodded and walked forward to tap Matt on the arm and lead him along. As the two people with Matt shook hands with Goku, Gohan asked, "Matt, who are they?"

"Those are my parents," Matt said as he placed his dish down next to the mashed potatoes. His voice sounded too light, as though he were hiding some deep uneasiness. "Geoffrey and Missy Jasso."

Gohan's eyes widened only slightly as he realized why Matt must have a hyphenated surname while his "parents" did not.

"I didn't know they'd adopted you," Gohan said quietly, and Matt's head snapped to look at him, brown eyes flashing dangerously.

"Are you going to tell me you can't be my friend now?" Matt demanded in a furious whisper, and Gohan blinked. "Are you going to ask about why I'm adopted? Because I can tell you right now that I don't have to tell you anything - "

"Matt, Matt, what are you talking about?" Gohan cut across him, working hard to keep the deep offense out of his voice. "Of course I want you to be my friend still. I just didn't know about your parents, that's all. They're still your parents, and that's how I'll treat them. If you want, I won't talk about it at all. It just took me by surprise. Why didn't you tell me?"

"You didn't ask," Matt replied coolly. "And even if you had, why should I have had to tell you? It's my business, isn't it?"

"I was only curious, Matt," Gohan said, his voice becoming more and more strained. "There's really nothing else to it. So they aren't your biological parents. What, did you think that I'd start to act down toward you because I have a biological father and you don't?"

"No…" Matt replied, and Gohan rolled his eyes.

"Whatever, Matt, that's a pack of lies. Look, we'll just pretend I knew all along, all right? I need to go introduce myself to your parents. Do you want to come and chat with my dad while we wait for the others to get here?"

Matt nodded, and flicked his head. Just like that, he was all pleasantness, and if one didn't know better, they'd never guess that he and Gohan had nearly gotten into a rather large and potentially destructive argument.

"Hello," Missy said, smiling warmly at him, effectively dispelling all illusions of frostiness. "If your father was any indication, you're Gohan, Matt's best friend." Gohan smiled and nodded, and Missy held out a hand that Gohan took.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs…" Gohan trailed off delicately, giving the impression that he wanted to confer respect to Matt's mother.

"You can call me Mrs. Jasso, or Missy," Missy said, her smile still in place. "Whichever you prefer."

"All right then, Mrs. Jasso. It's a pleasure," Gohan said with another smile as he turned to Geoffrey. "You must be Mr. Jasso, then, sir?" he asked, and Geoffrey nodded. "It's a pleasure, sir," Gohan said, holding out a hand that Mr. Jasso shook strongly.

"You're very well-mannered," Mrs. Jasso noted, and Gohan inclined his hand in thanks.

"Thank you, Mrs. Jasso." Just then, the bell rang, and Gohan said, "I'll get this one, Daddy." Goku nodded and herded Mr. and Mrs. Jasso into the living room, Matt following behind them.

Gohan opened the door to find Mr. Dolby and Mr. Dolby standing at the door, one holding a basket of rolls and the other a pot of what Gohan found to be stewed red cabbage. "Hi, Coach, Dolby," Gohan said as he stepped back to let them in.

"Gohan, outside of school and tennis, you're welcome to call us George and Harold," George said with a wink.

"Or Harry," Harold interposed. Gohan smiled and nodded, and then turned as he heard his father ask where he was.

"In here, Daddy," Gohan called, and Goku came around the corner. "Daddy, this is George Dolby, and this is Harold Dolby," Gohan said, gesturing to each of them in turn. "They're my coaches, and George is my homeroom teacher, and Harry is my math teacher. George, Harry, this is Goku Sondë, my father."

"It's a pleasure," Goku said, shaking each of their hands.

"The pleasure is ours," Harry said. "Especially when the Captain of our little team is the son of none other than the best player Orange Star High ever saw." Goku smiled and rubbed the back of his head as his head dipped slightly in embarrassment.

"Why didn't you continue to play after high school?" George asked. "You could've gone places."

"Gohan was born," Goku said simply, looping an arm around Gohan's shoulder. George and Harry both nodded in understanding, one smiling, the other respectful, and then another knock rang on the door. Goku moved to get it while Gohan directed the Dolby brothers where to place their dishes.

By the time he'd finished and moved them over to where Matt and his parents were, Goku was moving toward the table with Videl and her mother. Gohan inclined his head toward Sra. Filcure and said, "Hello, Mrs. Filcure."

"Oh, Gohan, outside of school, you can just call me Felicia," Videl's mother said with a light laugh and a wave of her hand. Gohan nodded and turned to Videl, who was holding what looked to be a cornucopia filled with grapes, apples, corn, and, from what Gohan could see, all sorts of nuts.

"Hi, Videl," he said quietly, and Videl gave a tiny smile.

"Hi, Gohan. How is your dragon coming along?" she inquired, and Gohan smiled. 'Only she would think to reference something that would be blatantly obvious to those who understood,' he thought, not noticing the way Videl's own smile widened at the sight of Gohan's.

"The dragon is coming along well, and has given me no problems," Gohan replied, and Videl nodded in understanding. Indeed, the id dragon had been content to try and stare down its reflection in the mirror ball, and hadn't even tried to escape, not since it had first been placed in the ball.

"What dragon is she talking about, Gohan?" Goku asked, and Gohan looked at his father, wondering whether he could trust him with this. 'Not yet,' Gohan decided. He'd tell his father sometime later, after he'd built the mountain.

"The dragon mindset I'm training in under Mariya-sensei," Gohan replied. "The way her discipline works is by channeling the mindset of three different animals, depending on which one shows itself most strongly to her. I follow the Dragon, Videl follows the Eagle, and Matt follows the Bear."

Goku nodded, pride in his features, and Felicia smiled. "Videl's told me about that martial arts club of yours. She said she's at the level of Poren - "

"Perun, mom," Videl interrupted quietly. Felicia waved her hand in that little motion again, and continued.

"She says that's the highest level in the discipline," Felicia said, pride evident in her voice.

"Is that so?" Goku inquired politely, though his focus was on Videl. 'Clever, Daddy,' Gohan thought as Videl took over the conversation.

"Yes, Mr. Sondë," Videl replied. "It isn't the highest level in the discipline, but it's one of the three highest. Perun is just the highest Eagle rank."

"Then what level are you at, son?" Goku asked Gohan. "Since you're the Dragon?"

"I'm at the level of Leviathan," Gohan said. "That's the second level. There are three."

"What level is Matt at?" Goku asked.

"I think he's at the level of Callisto," Gohan said. "That's the first level, but I don't know whether he's there for sure. Ask him."

"Later," Goku said. "Because right now, it's time to eat."

As though his words were a hook, Matt, his parents, and the Dolby brothers came from the living room and settled around the table. Gohan smiled at all of them and thought, 'I suppose this was a good idea after all.'

They settled around the table, and Goku said, "If Videl would like to say grace?"

Videl looked caught slightly off-guard, but nodded and lowered her head over folded hands and began to speak. "Our Kami who art on High, hallowed be thy name. Give us this day our bread, and we thank you for the ability to feast and be among those who are close to our hearts. We ask that you watch over us and lead us not into temptation, but to deliver us from evil, for Thine is the High Plane, and the only Glory worth seeking to attain. Amen."

A chorus of "Amen" ran around the table, and Goku began to carve the turkey. Just as everyone was being served and a pleasurable sort of chatter had started to rise, the doorbell rang. Goku and Gohan frowned at each other, and Goku rose from the table to answer the door. Gohan, out of curiosity, followed.

The knocker was no other than his mother. ChiChi Sondë, though if she had her way soon, she'd go back go being ChiChi Mao. "Hi, Goku," she said quietly, holding two pies, one pumpkin, one apple. She turned and saw Gohan, and her voice got even quieter. "Gohan," she said so softly that Gohan could barely hear her.

"Hi, Mom," he said, as Goku moved forward to take the pies.

"Can I come in?" ChiChi asked, and Goku frowned.

"ChiChi, this house is still yours," Goku said as he stepped back. "You don't need to ask permission to come into your own household."

"I appreciate that, Goku," ChiChi said. "But with what I've done to you and Gohan, I felt I should ask anyway."

Gohan wanted to think a smug thought, but found that he couldn't. ChiChi looked so…small. Like she'd been diminished somehow by initiating divorce proceedings and living with her father. Gohan couldn't think anything snark about her, not when she looked like that. He found, suddenly, that despite all the raging the id dragon had done at the thought of her, that he'd kind of missed his mother.

Not all her backhanded compliments and things like that, no. But her presence was missed. Gohan loved his father dearly, but it wasn't the same as having a mother to fuss over his appearance and etiquette. "Gohan?" ChiChi said, and Gohan looked at her.

"Can I…can I have a hug?" his mother asked, holding her arms out. Gohan could feel the id dragon stir and start to bash against the mirror ball, but it held firm, and he walked forward into her embrace.

"I'm so sorry, my baby," ChiChi whispered into his ear. "What you said in the hospital…it's all I've been able to think about. I realized that you were right, and that I'd made things worse instead of better. It was never my intent to make you think I didn't love you. You must hate me." Her voice sounded dead somehow as she said that, as though she'd already accepted that her son hated her and was making steps to move past it.

"I don't hate you, Mom," Gohan said quietly, and found that, in spite of the id dragon raging in the mirror ball, spitting fire every which way, it was true. He didn't hate ChiChi. She still made him unbelievably angry and incredulous at her refusal to do anything to salvage the relationship she could've had with him.

'But she is right now,' a voice whispered in his mind. One that reminded Gohan strongly of the Bear in its implacable honesty. 'She's making a genuine attempt to atone for her misunderstanding. Are you going to refuse her the chance now that she's finally trying?'

'But why did she wait until now? Why not sooner than this?' Gohan asked himself.

'Would it really have worked?' the voice shot back, and Gohan had to admit to himself - a very odd experience, incidentally - that no, it probably wouldn't have worked. Just yesterday, the id dragon had had free reign through Gohan's mind, and probably would've made him do something harmful in the name of revenge.

"All right," Gohan said, unaware that he was speaking out loud at first. Then, ChiChi moved, and Gohan realized that she was pulling away. He unlocked his arms from around her, and said, "Come on, Mom. There's an empty seat at the table."

He led her to the table and pulled out a chair for her that was right on Goku's other side. "Thank you, Gohan," ChiChi said, and Gohan smiled.

"ChiChi," Goku said as he sat down, his voice low. Gohan decided not to eavesdrop, but found he was still able to hear his father ask, "Does this mean that you're going to call off the divorce proceedings?"

Gohan found he didn't really want to hear his mother's answer, not if the way her smile vanished and she hunched her shoulders was any indication.

"Gohan," Videl said quietly, to catch Gohan's attention. Once she had it, she said, "I think you should watch your mother."

Gohan blinked. "Why would you say that?"

"She makes you frown." As if that were explanation enough, Videl turned and retrieved a roll from the basket that George had brought. Gohan frowned anyway. He didn't much like this cryptic Videl who was unwilling to explain what she was thinking. It was a lot like she'd been before they'd become friends, when she'd only watched, never interacted.

"She's still my mother, Videl," Gohan said, and Videl looked at him for a silent moment.

"She still hurt you, Gohan," she said finally, and Gohan found that he couldn't reply. Or he didn't want to. He wasn't sure which.

-TBC-

**A/N II:** Review, please.

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	11. Interlude: Test Your Might

**A/N:** It was brought to my attention that it would've been better had I elaborated more on the martial arts discipline I've created for this fanfiction. The review in question pertained to Chapter 7, "And We Can Breathe Again", where there was little actual fighting. Nearly the entire chapter was entirely in Gohan's mind, dealing with the **id** dragon, the **ego** Eagle, and the **superego** Bear. Not the Dragon, Eagle, and Bear of Mariya Stone's martial arts discipline.

However, I did realize that I didn't provide much of an explanation for how the kids managed to ascend through the ranks to get to the various positions I mentioned they had achieved. That's what this chapter-length interlude is for. This was actually rather fun to write, because I got to work with mental journeys more, and it stretched my creativity as far as it was willing to go. I've always admired fanfiction authors that have their characters go on mental journeys and describe it for their readers as they go. I'd like to be able to do that, and this was great practice.

In the future, I beg my readers to remember that the id dragon, ego Eagle, and superego Bear are entirely within Gohan's mind, and hold no bearing on the Dragon style mindset. In the future, I will often refer to Gohan's animals as the id dragon, Eagle, and Bear, and will refer to the martial arts styles by their names: Callisto, Jambhuvantha, and Nanook for the Bear style; Yatagerasu, Geruda, and Perun for the Eagle style; and Hydra, Leviathan, and Mushussu for the Dragon style.

Hopefully, this interlude will provide some depth to the martial arts discipline Mariya-sensei teaches.

Also, I included a couple of subtle nods to the Dragon Ball Z canon in this interlude. See if you can catch them.

As a final note, if you want to read this as though it were in linear order, this interlude would go between "Through the Fire and the Flames We'll Carry On" and "They Call Me Mr. Fahrenheit".

The title is from the Mortal Kombat theme song.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Interlude: Test Your Might**

In a room, under the watchful eye of a trusted sensei, five children began to search inside their minds for a way to become better fighters in their various styles. The sensei had told them that the main focus of the discipline was the mindset.

Of these, there were three. The Eagle, the mindset of grace, accuracy, agility, and speed, was one of them. The Bear, the way of thinking based on steadfastness, determination, sturdiness, and power, was another. The third mindset was the Dragon, which focused on evasiveness, counterstrikes, aggression, and relentlessness.

"Students, you are lucky in that we have at least one student for each style," the sensei said, surveying them as they deepened their breathing.

One student raised his hand. "Sensei," he said, yet keeping his eyes closed. "How long will we be here?"

"For as long as it takes," the sensei replied. "Do not worry, I have contacted your parents, and asked that the brothers Dolby call off practice for today. You need not trouble yourself." The student reluctantly nodded as he put his hand down, and the sensei continued.

"You have been instructed in how to look inside yourselves, and to stay relaxed while you survey the inner part of your mind. I wish for you, my students, to look deep inside yourselves. Find the animal that you follow. Talk to it, understand it, embrace its nature. Through this, you will be able to find the ability to advance through the ranks, headed for Perun, Nanook, or Mushussu. Your fighting ability will improve with your mental capability, as this discipline is just as much mental as it is physical, if not more so.

"I wish you luck as you walk along the paths, and will assist you where I can. Remember to watch them, more than anything."

* * *

Gregory Yalert drew in a deep breath as he felt himself sinking deeper and deeper away from the realm of conscious thought.

Oddly enough, the further he went away from the stream of his thoughts, it were as though he were ascending, rather than descending. He found he didn't really care.

The sky of his mind was odd-looking. The sky seemed to be a greenish-blue, which Greg supposed wasn't all that unusual. The clouds were throwing him off, however. The clouds seemed to emit a muted golden glow, as though they were illuminated by an incandescent light bulb or their own tiny sun.

Gradually, Greg became aware that he wasn't the only one navigating his mind. As he eventually turned his detached focus toward it, he found that it was even stranger than the clouds. It was a bird, that much was certain. It was large, and black, yet the undersides of its wings were a royal purple in color as the light from the clouds glinted off of them.

But the oddest thing was that the bird had three legs.

Greg wanted to study the bird's third leg, but found that he couldn't quite summon the will. So he remained floating, flying through the seemingly endless expanses of his mind. The three-legged black bird flew alongside him a while, not making any noise, until it circled around in front of him, pitch-black eyes beginning to glow purple as it stared Greg in the eyes.

Greg simply looked back, and found the glow getting brighter. He noted with detached interest how his vision seemed to pick up on purples that weren't there before, hidden everywhere, in the sky, in the clouds, in him. But the bird looked as though it had gone from black to dark amethyst. It was gorgeous.

Greg found himself falling through purple, falling slowly, gracefully, on currents of air that he could neither see nor feel.

Suddenly, his eyes opened, and he felt more…alert. More watchful. He looked to Mariya-sensei, who nodded and said quietly, "You are on the brink of ascending from Yatagerasu to Geruda. Very close. Had you let yourself fall to the bottom of that mass of purple, you would have encountered your Geruda."

Greg nodded, and laid on his back to think about what he had encountered in his own mind. One thing was for sure. If he ever got the opportunity, he would go flying, or maybe even skydiving.

* * *

Emily Morgane had closed her eyes to find everything turning green. She was standing in the middle of a great forest, one that nearly suffocated her…if she'd let it.

Taking deep breaths to acclimate her lungs to the dense air, Emily began walking.

As she walked, she noticed many small animals existing around her. Going about their own lives, seeing her and regarding her as nothing more than just another passing entity. This was peaceful. Emily found that she wanted to stay here for a long time.

Suddenly, she felt an overwhelming urge to look up at the sky. She did so, and found a rather startling sight meeting her.

Up there in the nighttime sky, among the stars, was a face watching her. The face wasn't human. She could see the slightly folded back ears, the long nose, the small eyes that watched her as she watched them. She was looking in the face of a celestial bear. "Callisto," she said softly, and the bear's ears flicked forward.

Its eyes began to glow with starlight, and yet Emily did not find that it hurt her eyes. She just kept watching as Callisto grew more and more radiant. Eventually, Callisto seemed to recede back into the stars. She positioned herself so that her nose was pointing off somewhere in the distance. Emily got the odd feeling that she should walk in the direction that Callisto's nose was pointing. With a nod to the bear in the stars, Emily began walking.

As she walked, she allowed getting out of the dense forest to become her number one priority, even though she managed to appreciate the beauty that laid in everything, from the leaves to the rabbits to the owls, even to the water droplets in the air that made a mist over everything from Emily's ankles down.

She allowed herself to watch the forest as she moved through it, and noticed how, even though she was disrupting the natural flow of things, the entire forest seemed to adapt and revolve itself around her.

Finally, she got out of the forest to find herself standing on the edge of a vast desertlike area, with only sparse trees dotting the landscape. She could see a shape reclining in front of one of the trees, and made her way toward it.

The desert was vastly different from the forest. Where the forest had been full of hidden activity, the desert was full of obvious emptiness. Except for the shape against the tree and the trees themselves, there didn't seem to be anything else around.

Finally, Emily got to the shape against the tree, and found that it was a bear, similar to Callisto, except this one was brown, the same shade as the ground around it. This bear also, when it looked at Emily, seemed to be far wiser than Emily could have ever imagined.

Suddenly, she found her eyes open, looking at Mariya-sensei, who said, "You have done well by Callisto, and have ascended to the rank of Jambhuvantha. He has a lot he wants to share with you, but you must let him."

Emily nodded and laid down on her back, thinking about the knowledge she had seen in Jambhuvantha's eyes. 'Knowing what he knows would make me wise, without a doubt. That must be just as important to the Bear mindset.' Nodding, pleased with her conclusions, Emily laid back and allowed her mind to wander until the end of the meeting.

* * *

Videl Filcure closed her eyes, and found herself in a mass of shifting blues. She felt herself drowning in blue, and let herself do it.

Suddenly, everything was clear around her, and she was floating, motionless in an endless field of white. The glaring did hurt her eyes slightly, but she allowed herself to look past the white, to a point far in the distance until her eyes had managed to completely ignore the glare.

Presently, she saw a speck moving against the white, and did her best to continue her unfocused stare. As it got closer, she saw the speck was blue, the same color blue as her eyes. Soon after that, she saw that it was an eagle, and that the edges of its wings were a skyblue color.

She found herself drawn toward the blue eagle flying in the field of white, and suddenly she was looking into its eyes. All three of them.

The eyes began to glow blue, and Videl could feel something trying to impress itself on her mind. She moved around it, absently studying it, even as it did the same. Her mind and it danced around each other, growing closer and closer until Videl got lost in the intricacy of sharing her mind with something else, embracing it.

She shifted her vision to the field of white only to find that it was now made of different patches of blue. The glare that had been constantly threatening her eyes was gone, though she could now see that there was a depression in the bluescape. The three-eyed eagle flew down that way, and Videl followed, even as the eagle became harder and harder to discern.

She found that the depression was a canyon, and she went in the canyon after the three-eyed eagle that she could now barely see. Just as it vanished completely, Videl became aware that something was watching her. She followed the sensation until she saw a large figure sitting astride a huge blue avian creature. The figure looked imposing, yet benevolent.

Videl wanted to study the figure sitting atop the bird, as he was obviously someone of immensely important stature. But her attention was forcibly drawn to what the imposing figure was riding.

It turned its head to look at Videl, and she found herself captivated by its deep sapphire eyes. The bird itself was enormous and navy blue, though its beak was cyan. What's more, its feathers glinted the color of blue topaz, though Videl didn't know where light would be coming from to reflect off its feathers.

She looked in its eyes again, and found that she knew that this was Geruda. And Geruda wanted to be ridden by Videl. She looked at the imposing figure, which shifted and began to dissipate as though made of mist. Videl blinked, but nodded and sat in the sapphire-studded seat attached to Geruda. Immediately, Geruda spread its wings, and they were off, rocketing towards the heavens.

Videl held on with all her might, managing to keep her hold even as Geruda did a wide variety of aerial tricks. She felt the sense of joy emanating from the bird, and did her best to understand it, embrace it for what it was. Geruda was free, graceful, majestic. Videl found she wanted to be that, as well.

As though it had been some sort of key, Geruda made a series of clicking noises and screeches, and increased its speed even more, if that was possible. Videl could see streaks start to form in front of them as Geruda started to move too fast for the air to move out of the way.

There was a loud boom, and then Geruda and Videl were on a plane that radiated joy and freedom. Waiting for them was an enormous eagle that was pure white, with sky blue wingtips, like the blue eagle that had led Videl into the canyon. Its eyes were the same shade as Videl's, and it flapped its wings slowly, staying in the air effortlessly.

It positively **crackled** with electricity, making popping noises as its wings flapped. It opened its beak and let out a cry that boomed like thunder. Videl nearly flinched. Nearly.

Instead, she put out a hand and waited for the eagle to respond. It did so by placing its beak in the palm of her hand, destructive as lightning, deafening as thunder, gentle as a summer breeze, the embodiment of freedom.

It let out a soft cry, and Videl found her eyes forced open to see Mariya-sensei clapping. "You've impressed me, Videl," she said. "You are Perun, I can see it in your eyes. You've met him, and he has accepted you. You're on your way."

Videl smiled and nodded. 'Perun.' She liked the way it sounded.

* * *

Matthew Jasso-Helod closed his eyes and immediately began searching. His scenery presented itself as an area in the mountains, in front of a cave. 'I need to go in there,' he thought, and proceeded directly into the cave.

All around him, it was dark. Matt was scared of the dark. It only spurred him to go faster in his search for…whatever he was looking for.

He got into an opening in the cave, and found himself staring down at an unmoving body of water. In it were reflected stars. Matt frowned. 'How can there be stars in a lake?' he thought. 'That doesn't make any sense.'

This was frustrating to him, because he really needed to find Callisto. It struck him suddenly how he'd actually known what he was looking for. He tried to think about what his adoptive mother, Missy, had told him about Callisto.

"_Callisto was a nymph of Artemis, according to the ancient Greeks. The story goes that she, like all of Artemis's nymphs, swore a vow to remain a virgin for all eternity. Supposedly, Zeus, in trying to hide from Hera's wrath, forced himself upon Callisto when she was separated from the other nymphs. Callisto became pregnant, which greatly angered Artemis, who, it's said, shot her with an arrow from her silver bow. _

"_After she'd died, Zeus placed her and her son Arkos in the sky. They are the constellations Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. Ursa Major is Callisto, and Ursa Minor her son Arkos."_

'She's not underwater,' Matt thought. 'She's in the sky.' He looked upward out of reflex and was shocked to find stars dotting what must have been the top of the cave.

Among the stars was a moving shape.

Matt squinted his eyes.

It caught him in its stare.

Matt fell backward as he realized that he was actually staring what had supposedly become of Callisto in the face. 'I suppose all the myths are true, then,' he thought, before getting up again. 'Whatever. I still need to connect with and embrace Callisto so I can ascend through the ranks.'

He looked Callisto in the eye defiantly, and she simply stared at him. Her eyes began to glow, and eventually, so did her body. Matt found himself unable to stare at her, and looked away, rubbing his eyes. 'It's too bright!' he thought.

"It's too bright!" he said aloud, snapping his eyes open to meet Mariya-sensei's slightly disappointed gaze.

"You were blinded by Callisto?" she asked, and Matt nodded. "You were not prepared to encounter her, then. You did not relax, you did not take what time you needed. You were too focused. Did I not say to observe, to make observation your highest priority?" She didn't sound angry, just understanding, but it made Matt flinch all the same.

"Callisto has not accepted you yet, as you have not accepted her. You've done enough for now, however. Do some thinking, and when you feel ready, you can search for her again. Until then, you remain at the level of Callisto. Don't think of it as something to be ashamed of," she added, when Matt looked down at the ground.

"Not ascending immediately is no cause for shame. Everyone goes at their own pace and level of ability and understanding. For some it is natural, for others, like yourself, it takes more effort. Next time you attempt to look inside yourself, **look** at things. Look at your surroundings, take note of what is there, look everywhere. Notice things. And relax. No one is pressing you to ascend through the ranks immediately. No one but yourself. Be calm, and you will advance."

Matt nodded, though he didn't look anyone in the eye, though he'd seen that everyone else had awoken at the same time he had. He didn't want to face the confusion and maybe even slight condescension in their expressions.

* * *

Gohan Sondë closed his eyes, afraid of what he would see. He'd had enough experience with the nigh-uncontrollable id dragon, and if the Dragons along his path were anything like that, he didn't want to face them. He'd remain at the level of Hydra, and not care.

But then, something in him, something competitive and unwilling to remain stagnant, made a disapproving sort of noise, as though it were feeling consternation toward Gohan for not even attempting to face the Dragons.

Gohan sighed and allowed his mind to expand, noticing everything he could. He could hear the breathing of his clubmates, could sense Mariya-sensei watching him. He could feel his own heartbeat, pumping steadily as it sent blood circulating through his body.

Gradually, he became aware that he was standing in blackness. Even as he noticed that, however, he noticed that were pulsing veins of red-orange running all along the blackness around him. The light from those veins got brighter until Gohan could see that he was standing on a sort of bridge that extended in front of him over the black abyss underneath him. He began to walk along the path.

As he walked, he noticed that even though the veins were pulsing, they all held different shades of red and orange in them. Some were ruby, some were scarlet, some were crimson, some were fiery orange, some were the orange of brass, some were mixtures of all of them, some were something else entirely. Yet they all pulsed in unison.

As Gohan walked, he became aware of a presence at the end of the bridge. He decided to wait until he got to it to worry about what it was, and watched the pulsing veins around him that broke the blackness up.

Finally, he got to the end of the bridge, and found himself staring up at a jet-black mass that glinted red, with many waving appendages that were the color of blood. It ran up the appendages, making patterns in what appeared to be scales before it got to end and ran into two bloodred objects that glittered.

Gohan realized those were eyes, and that he was face-to-face with a hydra, a many-headed dragon that was reputed to have an immortal head among the mass of countless other heads. And there was no way to discern the immortal head from the others.

'Wait, who said that I have to defeat a hydra?' Gohan thought, and one of the hydra's heads bent down to look him in the eye. It had a webbed comb that unfolded from the top of its head, and was as dark a red as its eyes. Gohan could see his reflection in the bloodred orbs, watching the hydra with something akin to wary interest.

The hydra touched its nose to Gohan's, and Gohan let out a tiny gasp as its eyes began to glow crimson. He could feel the dragon pushing on his mind, and allowed it to search around at its leisure, trying not to panic.

Oddly enough, it was a voice that sounded like the woman's that told him, "Gohan, this is not the id dragon, and it does not hold all the negative emotions the id dragon does. This is what the dragon **is**, what it represents. It is aggressive, it is ruthless, and yet it is graceful and awe-inspiring. This is what dragons are, and this is the nature of the dragons that are within you."

Gohan found this voice calming, and allowed his own mind to poke gently at the dragon. It became startled for a split second, then sucked Gohan in. Gohan gasped at the vast expanse of the hydra's mind, which was even odder, as the brain it held was the center brain, to which all the other heads' brains were connected, like a spider in a web.

The hydra's mind regarded him silently, and Gohan found himself seeing deeper and deeper into it. Suddenly, everything was black once more.

However, this blackness seemed to bubble, as though it were liquid. There was something moving here as well, although this moved more like a fish. A really large fish.

Gohan's eyes snapped open to find Mariya watching him silently. Suddenly, she asked, "Did you see the hydra?" Gohan nodded. "And the leviathan?"

"No," he replied. "All I saw was black. I could sense something moving, but everything was black." Mariya nodded slowly.

"You have ascended to the rank of Leviathan, Gohan-kun," she said. "You have done well. The mindset of the Dragon is the hardest to comprehend, because they are such powerful beings. They know many things humans are not meant to know, and to try to understand all the things a dragon knows is to drive oneself into madness."

Gohan nodded silently. 'Well, I'm not crazy…I don't think.' He found himself thinking about the hydra's mind, how there was one lead mind - which must belong to the immortal head - which was connected to all the other heads a hydra possessed. 'I suppose the challenge with being a hydra is being aware of what goes on at all times. They must have to be constantly vigilant, always watching.'

Gohan thought he could do that.

-TBC-

**A/N II:** Before I forget, I would like to thank my reviewers, and let them know that I don't ignore their reviews. Also, please keep in mind that I made three ranks for each animal mindset as a way to emphasize the different aspects I personally associate with each animal. Mariya Stone's martial arts discipline is not simple. It's complex, and there are meanings laid upon meanings, more than I'd originally intended to include or can manage to count. Just...remember that nothing regarding the martial arts discipline in this fanfiction is bland and straightforward.

What's more, the story of Callisto I told in a greatly abbreviated manner in this interlude is, to the best of my knowledge, accurate. If anyone spots something wrong, I'd appreciate it if they'd let me know so that I can fix it.

With that, review, please! :]

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	12. Upon Pillars of Salt and Pillars of Sand

**A/N: **And it took me this long to get the chapters back to the length I'd originally intended them to be.

With this chapter, His Saving Grace begins its end. In that time, Jenifyr's plan will come to light, Gohan will suffer something he never thought he would, the reason for Avery, Michelle, James, and Jenifyr's bullying of Gohan will be revealed, Videl and Gohan will get together, and the thread the last scene of the Intermission "Pictures Frozen in Time Are Becoming Clearer" will be tied up.

Chapters Ten, Eleven, and Twelve will cover Gohan's freshman, sophomore, and junior years of high school, simply because nothing happens in his eighth grade year except more of what you see happening in this chapter. Furthermore, nothing too much will happen in the first three years of high school to Gohan that will take more than one chapter. I'll try not to rush it too badly.

Anyway, as the story progresses from here on, Videl and Gohan become closer and closer (as will Gohan and another girl), and in his freshman, sophomore, and junior years, things will happen that lead up to his senior year. So, the next chapter will begin Gohan's high school career, in which many things are different from his elementary and middle school careers. The story will turn positively dark by the end, that much I can and do promise. But I can and do also promise that the story will end on a light-ish note. I just hope you'll stay with me, because we're on the home stretch.

This chapter also drops a thread or two that won't be tied up just yet, but they will be by the end of the story, I promise.

Without further ado, let's get on with it.

The title is part of a lyric from "Viva La Vida" by Coldplay.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 9 - Upon Pillars of Salt and Pillars of Sand**

The time after Gohan's mother seemed to show a profound depth of conscience seemed unreal to Gohan.

Not the fact that she was sorry for the mistakes she made due to her insecurities. Gohan entirely expected that. It was everything else that happened after Thanksgiving that seemed unreal.

First, Videl had still not changed her view of ChiChi, although she was much less likely to show her dislike - or so Gohan believed it was - as time went on. ChiChi and Videl talked a lot, and sometimes, Videl would tell Gohan what the two of them had discussed. Other times, she would not. The times she wasn't willing to disclose what had passed between her and ChiChi were what piqued Gohan's curiosity.

But no matter how often he asked, she always found a way to change the subject.

Another event that seemed unreal was Jack's return sometime around Valentine's Day. He wouldn't tell where he had been for months, but he would say that his family emergency had passed. What that family emergency was, he wouldn't tell. It was enough to have him back, however, and Gohan had told him so.

"I'm really glad you're back and okay, Jack," he said quietly at lunch, and Jack looked at him. "I'd missed you and your 'old soul'."

Jack just gave Gohan a tiny, sad smile and continued eating his lunch.

Tennis went amazingly well, and the entire team's morale seemed boosted by Jack's return. Gohan couldn't have asked for a better second semester.

The Triple Tenet Club, with Mariya-sensei's guidance, progressed further and further along as each student managed to find ways to ascend to the higher levels. Matt, much to everyone's surprise and pride, had managed to ascend to the rank of Jambhuvantha. Mariya deemed Emily as having attained the rank of Nanook, and charged her with continuing to train until she felt confident enough to take Mariya on. Mariya told the same thing to Videl and Greg, both of whom had by just before Spring Break become Perun. Matt, Mariya-sensei said, was progressing at the same rate that Gohan was, and that they both were doing extremely well. Gohan remained at the level of Leviathan, while Matt became better and better at following the mindset of his style. All in all, the club was doing extremely well.

In regard to his mind and its tenants, Gohan had come up with a tentative way to bring Videl, or, as the Bear liked to refer to her, the Eagle Girl, into his mind long enough for him to create the mountain he was going to make his mind into.

He decided that he would begin on Kami Day, five days before his seventh grade year would end.

On that day, he called Videl and asked her to come over so that he could make his mental mountain. She didn't reply except to say, "I will be there soon." The phone clicked, and Gohan put the headset down, shrugging.

As he waited for Videl to arrive, he reflected on the behavior of the Snotty Squad, James and Jenifyr in particular. Avery and Michelle seemed far too preoccupied with something to pay much attention to Gohan, and so he'd expected that with the slack Avery was giving him, James and Jenifyr would be more than willing to pick up on it and subject Gohan to twice the humiliation.

The odd thing was, however, that, for the most part, they left him alone.

James gave him odd looks sometimes, and made gripping motions as though he were holding something, but other than the vaguely unsettled feeling it gave Gohan, James left him alone. Furthermore, when Gohan did look James in the eye, he found a calculating glint there, to be sure. But under that, Gohan could swear that he saw a mixture of remorse, fear, and reluctance.

Even odder was Jenifyr. Far from humiliating Gohan on a regular basis, Jenifyr, since shortly after Winter Break, made attempts to talk to him. He always entered and left these conversations warily, simply because, after Jenifyr had had a hand in antagonizing him for so long, it was extremely weird to hold civil conversations with her. Mostly, the discussions they had were over inane topics, such as Jenifyr's hair color, or the social studies class they didn't share.

Jenifyr's eyes were more guarded than James's, although Gohan could see a small amount of real interest in them. With the interest was a mild curiosity, but her eyes also held a sort of scheming that unsettled Gohan. When he told Matt and Videl about Jenifyr's new civility, Matt had laughed and shaken his head in disbelief, and Videl had looked at Gohan much the same way she had at Thanksgiving.

Despite everything Jenifyr had done, Gohan found himself slowly getting more and more acclimated to her attempts at conversation and, when he wasn't paying too much attention, found that Jenifyr could be…almost pleasant, if not a mildly interesting diversion.

The doorbell rang, and Goku's voice found Gohan's ears. "Gohan, can you get that? I'm a little occupied at the moment." Gohan stood and walked to the front door, and opened it to find Videl standing there.

"Hi, Videl," Gohan said quietly, and Videl smiled at him.

"Hi, Gohan," she replied, and then caught sight of Goku standing in the kitchen. "Hello, Mr. Sondë," she said with a small bow of her head, and Goku inclined his head in return. Then, Gohan grabbed Videl's hand and led her to his bedroom.

"So, I think I know a way for you to come into my mind with me," Gohan said the instant his door was shut and locked.

"How is that?" Videl asked.

"I'm thinking it'd be kind of like when Mariya-sensei asks us to go into that sort of trance thing we do when we try to find our inner animals," Gohan replied, and Videl nodded as though considering this. "I mean," Gohan continued, "If we both were to go into that meditation-like trance, I think we might be able to encounter each other, and then I could lead you into my mind."

"Do you really think that would work?"

"Unless you have any of your own ideas, it's all we can do," Gohan replied, and Videl nodded somewhat reluctantly.

With that, they both sat on the floor, and Gohan closed his eyes. He could only bring Videl into his mind…or so he hoped. Videl would have to do her own part, though.

* * *

Videl didn't like this at all, she realized as she sat down and closed her eyes obligingly.

She didn't like much of anything that had been happening since Thanksgiving, actually, starting with Gohan's mother. They chatted, the two of them, but Videl still deeply distrusted ChiChi. It had been ChiChi who had triggered all of Gohan's mental turmoil, and brought Videl onto the scene. Not that she minded that particular consequence. She liked Gohan, she was fairly sure of it.

He was hard not to like; at least, that's how Videl saw it. He was nice, he was quiet, he had gotten confidence yet he wasn't an egomaniac, and since he'd had his back hurt, he had to stand up straight, since it hurt him to hunch his back. Plus, with as active as he was being in tennis and with the physical training aspect of the Triple Tenet Club, he was becoming the type of person his father must have been when he was Gohan's age.

She didn't realize that she had thought herself into a trance until she felt a nudge on the edge of her perception. Instinctively, she slowly rolled her attention toward the nudging sensation she felt, and felt it hook onto her. It began to tug her along slowly, and she let it take her where it would. 'I hope this works,' she thought to herself as she began to discern a vast landscape with an odd protrusion sticking out of it.

* * *

'I think this will work,' Gohan thought happily as he continued to drag Videl into his mind until he could see her clearly. He slowly brought the hook he'd used into him, and waited until Videl opened her eyes. When she did, he smiled and said, "Look, it worked."

Videl cocked her head to one side as she nodded, and Gohan turned to the cave, where he could sense the Bear coming to the surface.

Soon enough, the light began to burn brilliantly, and Gohan and Videl took a step backward as the Bear emerged from its cave. "**You are ready?**" it asked, and Gohan nodded. The Bear nodded in return, then turned its head slowly to see Videl. "**And you have brought the Eagle Girl with you. Good, she will be able to help.**" It paused, and tilted its head to one side. "**You have a comment, Eagle Girl?**"

"Yes," Videl said, and Gohan was slightly startled to hear her voice sound as confident as it did. "Do you think it would honestly be best to rebuild Gohan's mind from a plain into a mountain?"

"**What else did you have in mind?**" the Bear asked, and it sounded as curious as Gohan felt.

"Well, maybe something like a castle," Videl said slowly. "That way, Gohan can just build from the ground up, and not have to tear everything down and then rebuild it."

Gohan thought about it, and found that he really couldn't see anything wrong with it. "Plus," he said aloud, "The id dragon, if it ever managed to free itself, wouldn't be able to create as disastrous an effect as if it were to shatter a mountain. I think Videl's suggestion is a good one." He looked to the Bear, who was slowly nodding.

"**Very well,**" it said. "**I can live in the castle, the id dragon in the highest tower, and the Eagle can roost where it pleases. Eagle Girl, you are intelligent.**" It looked toward Gohan, who was already nodding as though he could see how the castle was going to be laid out.

"Videl," Gohan said, looking at her, "Can you stand over there?"

"Sure, but why?" Videl asked.

"Because that's going to be the central tower, where the id dragon will be," Gohan replied. Videl nodded and moved to where Gohan indicated, and waited as Gohan closed his eyes and held out his hands. 'All right,' he thought. 'Let's raise a castle.'

* * *

It was very odd to watch someone construct something in their mind, Videl decided as she watched Gohan's face tighten and relax as he began to picture what the castle would look like.

One second, she was standing on flat land. The next, there were walls all around her, stone walls, and a wooden floor underneath her. Overhead, the ceiling closed to a point. Videl looked around and saw that she was in a wide, circular room that had absolutely nothing in it. That was all she registered before the ground shook slightly, and she found herself pressed against the floor.

As suddenly as she was pressed against the floor, she found herself able to stand. As she stood, a window appeared instantly in the wall, and she walked over to it and looked out.

She couldn't help the gasp that escaped her mouth.

She was in the highest tower, by far, but the massive amount of towers, turrets, and other structures managed to distract her from that. From her vantage point, she could see the towers around her forming, grey in color with black pointed roofs. A few of them had walk-around platforms that obviously designated rooms meant to spend time doing leisurely activities. Others were just tall cylinders with pointy roofs. Still others seemed to be connected by pathways in between them, forming a long walkway that wound in, out, and around the other towers of the castle.

She looked directly down and found she could see a speck of green that obviously designated a courtyard, though she couldn't see Gohan. She knew he was there, but she couldn't see him. Moreover, she'd never considered herself particularly afraid of heights, but looking down at the courtyard from a position on level with grey clouds that she just realized were there was quickly making her think that she was deathly afraid of heights.

Even in her fear, she could tell that Gohan was proud of what he was building, and that he probably had that smile on his face. The one that made his eyes light up. She gave a smile of her own at the thought of Gohan's real smile.

* * *

Gohan was impressed with what he had created, when he finally deemed it complete. He left the courtyard to look at it from a distance, and found that he couldn't see the top of the highest tower. It was hidden in the clouds. Overall, the castle had a very foreboding air about it, as though it were hiding something that really did not need to be released.

Considering it was going to hold the id dragon, Gohan found that sentiment all too convincing.

He looked it over, impressed in spite of himself at the immense scale of the castle. It truly was a castle that Gohan felt would hold against all but the apocalypse itself. He closed his eyes again, and when he opened them, he found that a banner of sorts had spread itself against the tallest tower. It was a picture of a capital letter S, but the S was a dragon, most likely the id dragon, or a representation of it. Perched on the crown of the S was the Eagle, and sitting in the bottom curve and supporting itself along the upper inner curve was the Bear.

Gohan definitely liked the castle, and he wanted Videl to see it from the outside.

And like that, she was standing beside him, looking at the castle. "Wow," was all she said, and Gohan grinned. He couldn't help it. This had actually worked, and he had Videl to thank for it. He grabbed her arm lightly and, when she turned her head to look at him quizzically, grinned again before hugging her.

"Thank you, Videl," he said quietly as he felt Videl's arms come up across his back. "I really do appreciate your help," he said, and felt her nod into his shoulder. They stayed like that for a time, until the Bear said, "We will need to move the id dragon into its holding chamber."

Gohan nodded as he and Videl separated and found the id dragon with no difficulty. After exploring his mind as often as he had, he knew exactly where everything was, especially since his mind had been so uncomplicated.

He directed the mirror ball toward the highest tower, and it vanished. Gohan felt a weight settle in the castle that told him that the id dragon was where it was supposed to be, and that his construction had worked. "Where will you reside in the castle?" he asked the Bear, who made a motion that could've been described as a bear shrug.

"**I will find a place, as will the Eagle when it comes to roost,**" it replied. "**You have done well. You and the Eagle Girl may return to your own physical world, so as not to raise any more worry.**"

'Any more worry?' Gohan thought as he pulled himself and Videl out of his mind. As they floated into the space between his mind and the physical world around them, he felt Videl disconnect from him, and let his perception follow her until he had to retract into himself.

They opened their eyes at the same time, and looked at each other. Gohan smiled again and reached out for Videl's hand, and she let him take it. "Thank you," he said again, and she simply nodded with a smile of her own. Gohan felt unbelievably happy, like he had accomplished something important.

The warning the Bear had given him about a mountain becoming a volcano with the id dragon in it was disregarded entirely. He didn't have a mountain, he had a castle. The id dragon wouldn't turn a castle into a volcano.

He was safe.

-TBC-

**A/N II:** It's a short chapter. I know. Review, please.


	13. Freshman, Freshman, Freshman, Freshman

**A/N:** This chapter covers all the important things to note in Gohan's freshman year of high school. It's short, but I don't see the need to drag things out more than they need to be.

Think of everything before this chapter, this chapter, the two chapters (and whatever interludes or intermissions or whatever decide to show up, since I haven't planned for those) after this one the exposition. Chapter 13 will set off toward the climax, and the scene I had originally envisioned when I began writing this fanfiction.

It'll move quickly from here up until Gohan's senior year, in which things will progress like they did earlier in the fanfiction. It won't be quite as slow, since the martial arts now takes a backseat, along with Gohan's mental turmoil (or lack thereof) for the most part. We're almost done, I promise.

The title is part of a lyric from "I Love College" by Asher Roth. (I hate the song, but the lyric was appropriate.)

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 10 - Freshman, Freshman, Freshman, Freshman**

Three things served to differentiate Gohan's freshman year of high school.

One was the fact that he wasn't dreading it. Another was the fact that he was actually friends with Jenifyr Stone and James Pickett, though Avery Ratcliffe and Michelle Belafonte still seemed caught up in whatever troubles they were having. If Gohan didn't know better, he'd say that the problem they were having had actually gotten worse as time continued to pass.

The third thing was that Gohan had a reputation before entering Orange Star High School, and it was a good one. His two-year tenure as Captain of the Orange Star Junior High School tennis team had made local headlines numerous times, and most of the teachers and underclassmen knew of Gohan, and wondered whether he'd go straight to the varsity team, or whether he'd be made to start out at junior varsity and have to work his way up.

Also, instead of his father escorting him to school, he was walking with Matthew Jasso-Helod and Videl Filcure.

Okay, so that was four things.

His classes were easy, since his mother had, after successfully reintegrating herself into Gohan and Goku's life, begun to drill him on subject matter that she believed he would encounter in high school. As such, he was more than prepared to meet the challenges the teachers tried to throw his way.

He could speak Spanish extremely well, since he'd taken it upon himself to get extra practice in the form of holding conversations with Sra. Filcure both in and outside of class, when he wasn't in tennis practice or with the TTC.

All in all, his freshman year was going very well.

* * *

"Mariya-sensei," Gohan said, bowing deeply and waiting as she returned the bow. "I believe I am ready," he said, and she raised an eyebrow, tucking her blonde hair behind her ear.

"You believe you are ready? After a year of no progress whatsoever, now you believe you are ready?" Indeed, Gohan had made little progress in the mental aspect of his training over his eighth grade year, much to Mariya's disapproval. In truth, he had conversed with the Leviathan and had nearly become close enough with it to ascend to the final tenet. Matt, Videl, Greg, and Emily had long since become Nanook and Perun. Gohan had been the only one never to get to the final rank. As such, Mariya had charged him with coming to her whenever he felt he was ready, and they would continue.

"Yes, Mariya-sensei, I believe I am now," Gohan said, with a nod of his head, and Mariya looked him, her eyes slightly narrowed, before she gestured for him to sit down.

"You know what you are to do," she said, and Gohan nodded. He closed his eyes, and it was as though the Leviathan were waiting for him.

He looked into its dark blue eyes that glittered darkly against its sinuous black body, waiting, watching it. All around him, what he had determined was water bubbled slightly, constantly moving, never still.

'You, Leviathan, you are mystery,' Gohan thought. 'You move in the depths where no one can find you, yet all know of you. They do not know you, but they are aware that you exist, and that you are dangerous. What is it you do, to create such knowledge concerning you?'

The Leviathan's eyes began to glow, and Gohan found himself being immersed in something that moved like water, yet held much more concentrated power. He was in front of the Leviathan, he was near the Leviathan, he was with the Leviathan, he **was **the Leviathan.

He found that the Leviathan did not need to do anything to bolster its reputation…now. Before, at its genesis, there had been those foolish enough to attempt to subdue and exterminate the Leviathan. The Leviathan had retaliated ruthlessly, aggressively, dominatingly. It had crushed those who had sought to ruin it, and all in the name of self-preservation.

It was not a beast of no caliber. It only attacked in cases where it was in danger. It never actively sought to enter a conflict. It did not need to. There was no point in needless fighting. As long as the Leviathan could live on its own terms, independent from those who were not like it, then all would be well. It had the power and the wisdom to make sure it could live in peace.

Gohan found himself slipping past the Leviathan's thoughts, past the glowing blue, past the sensation of movement.

Then, all was still.

Gohan was in a corridor that appeared to be made of white marble with stars and golden whorls flowing all through it, over the floors, across the walls and ceiling. Everywhere was white, and everywhere was golden. Along the floor were footmarks, as though someone had made this journey before him.

He began walking.

As he walked, he found himself looking at the ceiling, which was showing pictures. He could see himself facing the Hydra, and found that his eyes had glowed as deep red as the Hydra's had. He also saw a similarity in the immortal head's webbed comb and his own unruly hairstyle.

The next image he saw was that of himself facing off against Jeremy Handel in that first tennis match. He saw himself pushing through his injury at the hands of James to win the match. He saw his collapse, and the episode that followed at the hospital. He saw Dr. Botani come bustling in, and realized vaguely that he had not needed to see either Rowan or Nurse Rose for the rest of seventh grade and all of eighth grade.

He saw Thanksgiving, and his mother come back. The divorce proceedings had gone through, and she was now ChiChi Mao, though she and Goku were working to marry again.

He saw himself building the castle in his mind, and placing the id dragon in it. He saw himself hugging Videl, and felt warm at the memory.

He saw himself facing the seething black mass that was the Leviathan, his eyes glowing blue like the Leviathan's were.

He saw the white marble corridor, with himself walking along it.

He saw himself.

His witnessing came to an end, and he found himself looking at himself. He looked in front of him, and found himself in front of an enormous gate made of gold. The pillars on each end had a crescent moon with a star mounted in the curve.

In between the bars of the gate was a dragon. It was white, like the marble, and its eyes looked to be made of bronze. It had a golden, spiky ridge that started at its head and went all the way down it, to the tip of its tail, where it spread out in a spiny fan shape. On its face were two long, golden whiskers. It had two feet at its front end.

Gohan walked up to the gate and pressed a hand to the dragon. It began to vibrate softly, yet Gohan did not remove his hand. The dragon began to shift, yet Gohan's hand remained where it was.

He could hear a growling noise as the dragon began to move and unravel itself from the gate, yet his hand stayed against it.

His hand remained in front of him even as the dragon wrapped itself around him, starting at his feet and twisting itself around and around. It curled around his neck and up over his head, twisting itself so that it could face him head-on.

It bobbed up and down slowly, watching Gohan, who watched it back. Its whiskers waved, its clawed feet pointed the claws at Gohan, as though it would attack him. Still he simply watched, and waited.

The dragon's claws shot out and latched onto either side of his neck, sinking deep enough to draw blood, yet he did not move. The dragon's face moved closer until its nose touched his own. Its eyes began to glow a golden glow. The glow grew brighter and brighter, until Gohan could barely stand to continue looking into it. It was like looking into the sun, it was so bright, it started to burn…

Gohan's eyes snapped open to find himself sitting in front of Mariya-sensei, who was watching him, looking shocked. His hand was outstretched in front of him, like it had been when he'd touched the dragon.

"You have encountered Mushussu," Mariya-sensei said, her voice slightly reflecting the awe shown on her face. "You are at the final level, as I am, though you still need to become more familiar with it. You have done extremely well, Gohan-kun. All that lies before you on this path you are able to obtain of your own volition. You need not come here again."

Gohan stood and bowed to his sensei, who returned the bow, and then he turned and left.

* * *

Gohan was walking home, laughing with Videl and Matt. His hand lightly brushed Videl's constantly, yet she did not seem to mind. She looked up to Gohan, who abruptly realized that he was head and shoulders taller than she was. Matt was almost his equal in height, though a bit shorter.

Suddenly, Gohan's cell phone that he'd gotten for his 14th birthday rang. He recognized the ringtone as the one he'd set for Jenifyr. He silenced the call and continued talking with Matt and Videl until he got to his house, where he flipped open his phone and dialed her number.

She picked up on the second ring. "Hello?" her voice came across the line sounding a bit breathy, as though she were winded…or excited.

"Hi, Jenifyr, it's Gohan," Gohan said, and noted distractedly how his voice echoed in the receiver. It sounded really deep. 'Does my voice sound that deep to everyone?' he wondered before Jenifyr answered.

"Oh, hi, Gohan! Listen, I wanted to ask you something, but I need to ask it to you in person. Can you meet me somewhere? Anywhere, it doesn't really matter. I just really need to talk to you." Gohan nodded, slightly wary, and told her he'd be at the city park. "Okay, Gohan, I'll see you soon!" The phone clicked, and Gohan flipped it shut. He looked at it for a few seconds before shrugging and putting it in his pocket. Apparently, he had a meeting with Jenifyr to get to.

He arrived at the park first, and sat at a bench, leg bouncing up and down as he waited for Jenifyr.

Finally, she arrived, looking a bit frazzled. Gohan stood, slightly alarmed by this point, and said, "Jenifyr, what is it? You sounded really weird on the phone."

"Gohan, do you like me?" The question caught Gohan off-guard, and he stuttered over an answer for a few seconds.

"Er, we're friends, yes, if that's what you mean."

Jenifyr shook her head. "No, I mean as more than friends."

Gohan tilted his head to one side as he studied her. She seemed sincere about her question, though he couldn't fathom why Jenifyr would care about whether he saw her as a friend or something else. Truth be told, he did feel a faint spark whenever he looked at her. She was pretty, and, since halfway through seventh grade, she'd shown that she and Gohan had a lot more in common than he'd originally thought.

But he had to be sure. "Jenifyr, what is it you're asking of me?"

"Wouldyoubemyboyfriend?" It came out extremely fast, as though it were all one word, and Gohan started. He looked at her, eyes wide, jaw half-open. Jenifyr began to fidget with her hair as she said, "I only ask because, well, I really like you, and I want to spend more time with you, and we seem to get along so well and it makes me so sorry that I ever picked on you like I did and I want to make it up to you - "

"Jenifyr," Gohan said, cutting her off before she began hyperventilating from lack of oxygen. "Breathe." He waited patiently while she did so, then said, "I like you, too. We can see where it goes. Do you want to be my girlfriend?"

Jenifyr immediately broke into a wide smile and tackled Gohan to the ground with a squeal. Gohan couldn't help but laugh. "I guess that's a yes," he said off-handedly, and Jenifyr let out a giggle before she let him up. As he stood, she looped a hand around the back of his head and pulled it down to meet hers. She placed a short kiss on his lips then moved back, blushing furiously.

Gohan blinked once…twice…thrice, then shook his head shortly. He held out his hand, and Jenifyr took it, interlacing her fingers with his. They stood like that for a long time, simply looking at each other. Finally, Jenifyr mumbled something about needing to get home, and Gohan let her hand drop from his. She pecked him on the cheek and giggled again before running off, waving behind her. Gohan returned the wave half-heartedly before turning and heading for his own house, wondering what in the name of Kami he'd just gotten himself into.

He got to his house and into his room before his cell phone let out the beep it did when he got a text message. He flipped his phone open, wondering what on earth Jenifyr could have to say over a text that she couldn't have said while staring him in the face.

What the text message actually said hit Gohan like a punch in the stomach.

_Have fun with Jenifyr._

_- Videl_

* * *

The whispers immediately began circulating that Gohan Sondë, first freshman since his father to skip the junior varsity tennis team completely and go straight to the varsity team, was dating Jenifyr Stone. Rumors began going around about what Jenifyr had done to get Gohan to say yes, about which of them had actually asked the other, about what this would do for Gohan and Jenifyr.

Almost as immediately, a new whisper began circulating. It spread through the halls like wildfire.

"Videl Filcure is dating James Pickett."

-TBC-

**A/N II:** Ahh, the plot, she begins to thicken. This sets up a couple of (possibly) nasty confrontations in the future, but hey. All's fair in love and war, no? Review, please.


	14. Do You Think About Me Now and Then?

**A/N:** Every once in a while, an author writes a chapter that speaks for itself. This chapter is one of them, and it's one of the longest ones I've written for this story. I hope you enjoy it.

Here's hoping Gohan has fun at his dance.

The title is part of a lyric from "Homecoming" by Kanye West and Chris Martin, of Coldplay.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 11 - Do You Think About Me Now and Then?**

Sophomore year began, and it was different from Gohan's freshman year in two respects.

One was his dating Jenifyr Stone, and finding that she became closer to his heart every day. The other was that he and Videl rarely spoke in each other's presence any more, and Gohan found that he missed her deeply. He couldn't understand why Videl was acting the way she was.

He decided to ask Jenifyr what her ideas were about Videl.

"Oh, Gohan, babe," Jenifyr said with a giggle as she shook her head. "She's jealous!"

"Jealous?" Gohan repeated, tilting his head to one side. 'Not Videl. She's always been one of my closest friends since seventh grade. She'd always be more important.'

"Yes, dear, jealous," Jenifyr said patiently, with a toss of her long, black hair. "She wanted you for herself, and because we're together now, she's positively green."

"I find that hard to believe," Gohan said doubtfully. "If she really was, then she wouldn't have started dating James."

Jenifyr shook her head again. "She started dating James** because** she's jealous. She's trying to make you jealous and steal her away from James so that the two of you can be together."

Gohan still wasn't sure what he thought about Videl dating James Pickett. She didn't appear to be happy with James, but Gohan refused to think about her that way. Videl had James, and he had Jenifyr. "I wouldn't do that," he said quietly. "Videl wanted to be with James, and I want to be with you."

Jenifyr laced her hands around the back of his head and pulled him toward her, and they kissed. It served as a nice distraction, but soon enough, Gohan pulled away and rested his chin on Jenifyr's shoulder. "Do you really think that's how she wanted it?" he asked her softly, and Jenifyr sighed before moving her hands up to play in his hair. Gohan found his eyes sliding shut against his will as he found himself relaxing. He had told Jenifyr about the trick his mom had used to do to get him to sleep when he was little - and when she wasn't being particularly standoffish. She'd since taken to doing it more and more often as time progressed. Gohan couldn't say that he minded.

"Just don't think about it," Jenifyr said quietly, crooningly. Gohan nodded and let himself be distracted by Jenifyr's fingers.

* * *

"James," Videl said, trying to regain control of her head as James attempted to devour her neck. "James," she said again as his hands began to move up under her shirt to glide across her stomach. "James," she said firmly, grabbing his forearm as his hand wandered upward.

"What, Videl?" James asked, face buried in her shoulder.

"Don't do that."

"Do what?"

"What you were doing just now."

"You mean this?" His hand started to wander upward again, and Videl scowled as she grabbed his hand again.

"Yes, that. Don't do it."

"Why not?"

"I don't want you to."

James pulled back, and Videl could sense that he was regarding her speculatively. Finally, his hands interlocked themselves and rested on Videl's lap. "Better?" he asked, and Videl nodded. "Good."

"James?"

A sigh. "What?"

"Are we going to the Homecoming dance?"

James pulled away entirely and let Videl turn around to face him. "If you want to," James said. "Do you want to go to Homecoming?" Videl nodded, and James said, "Well, then. Videl, will you go with me to Homecoming?" Videl smiled at his attempt at chivalry and nodded, and James grinned.

It was a nice smile, but it wasn't the same as Gohan's. Videl tried not to think about him and his smile too often any more. He was with Jenifyr, and so they would have to stay friends. She still talked to Gohan, but now their topics of conversation were greatly limited.

Videl supposed it was jealousy. She couldn't trust that Jenifyr would be able to find out what she and Gohan talked about, especially regarding the Castle. Videl wanted to keep that part of Gohan to herself. It made her feel slightly better that she still had access to a part of Gohan that Jenifyr couldn't get to. She knew Gohan would never willingly tell Jenifyr about it. That would have to be enough.

'What if you don't want it to be enough?' a voice asked her in mind as James flicked on his computer to presumably search for matching suits and dresses for Homecoming. Videl had to admit that James was a lot more organized, respectful, and prioritizing than she'd originally given him credit for.

She also had to admit that she was distracting herself from the question the voice in her mind had asked. 'Even if I want it to be more…' she thought, and had to work to suppress the hope that blossomed in her chest, 'Unless he wants the same thing, friends is all we'll ever be.' That thought hurt, Videl admitted to herself. She seemed to be making a lot of admissions to herself of late.

"Videl," James voice broke into her thoughts. She gave herself a mental shake to rid her mind of immediate thoughts of Gohan, and looked at James inquiringly. He gestured to the computer screen, and Videl got up to look at the monitor.

"James, that suit is handsome," she said, marveling. It was a simple dark grey with lighter grey stripes, though it was slightly unique in that its shirt was, instead of white, a very very pale robin's egg blue. Almost like white that wanted to be blue, but had only managed to acquire a bluish tint. There was a carnation in the lapel, and it didn't come with a bow tie, but it didn't need to. The pants were the same striped pattern as the jacket, and overall it was a very impressive-looking suit.

"Wait until you see the dress," James replied, and clicked the mouse a couple of times until the dress was on the screen. Videl gasped. It had a halter bodice that was the same blue as the suit's shirt at the bust and faded to a pale grey at the waist. The skirt would go down to Videl's ankles and continued the color fade from the bodice, but in reverse order. At the waist it was the pale grey, and as it went to the bottom of the skirt, it faded to the pale blue it was at the top of the bodice. The shoes were pure white, and Videl supposed that the visual effect would be akin to making her look like she was walking on clouds.

Furthermore, the skirt glittered, not unlike the dresses on fairy dolls did. "James, that's beautiful," Videl said, her voice hushed.

James chuckled and said, "I take it you like that set? Should we do that for Homecoming?" Videl could only nod, and James laughed again. "We'll have to go to the outfitters to get the suit and dress fitted, but it looks like we've got ourselves coordinated," he said.

Videl gave him a brilliant smile, her eyes sparkling. 'I can't wait for Homecoming, if that's my dress.'

A knock on James's door startled them both. A female voice came floating through the door. "How are you doing in there, dears?"

"Fine, Gran," James replied, yet Amelia entered anyway. Videl realized that, as Amelia let out a gasp, this was in actuality the first time that she'd spent any sort of extended amount of time near either of James's grandparents.

"So you're James's girlfriend," Amelia said, and Videl gave a wary nod. "I haven't had much of a chance to chat with you, dear." Her voice sounded inviting, but Videl couldn't help but feel cautious. James had told her that he lived with his grandparents, but he'd never said where his actual parents had gone. Videl hadn't felt the need to pry.

"What is your name again, dear? My poor memory just isn't as good as it used to be," Amelia was saying now, and Videl shook her head lightly again.

"Videl, Mrs. Pickett," she said. "Videl Filcure."

"That girl that James always told me, as he said, 'hung around' with that Sondë boy?" Videl gave a start and looked at James, who had gone back to perusing the Internet. Videl raised an eyebrow at him, and then nodded to Amelia.

"Yes, Mrs. Pickett. Gohan is a friend of mine."

"Come to think about it, I heard dear James here talking with that nice rock girl about you and Gohan," Amelia said, and Videl gave another start. "Her name was…Ooh, what was it? Something like rock, or pebble…or stone…That's it!" Amelia snapped her fingers. "Stone, that was the girl's name. Jenifyr Stone."

"Gran, we have to go," James said abruptly, shutting down his computer and standing.

"Oh, but I was having such a nice time chatting with Ms. Filcure here," Amelia said with a smile at Videl. Videl barely managed to return the smile, as her brain was occupied with whatever Jenifyr could've talked to James about concerning her and Gohan.

"I'm glad, Gran, but I have to get Videl home," James said, and ushered Videl and his grandmother out of his room.

"Well, if you say so, dear," Amelia said with a sigh. "I never get to talk to any of your friends any more, James."

"You and Videl can talk more when you're helping her get ready for Homecoming," James said, and Amelia clapped her hands.

"We'll have a lot of fun, Videl!" she said happily, and Videl gave a nod and another weak smile.

'I need to find out what on earth James and Jenifyr talked about. And what it has to do with me and Gohan.'

* * *

Jenifyr wouldn't stop giggling, and Gohan found it mildly irritating. She'd managed to rope him into going to Homecoming, and had gone on to make ChiChi jump on the bandwagon, and "urge" Gohan to go to the outfitting store to find a suit and dress that coordinated.

Gohan had sighed and nodded, and Goku had given him his bank card per ChiChi's suggestion, telling him not to spend too much on a suit that he'd probably grow out of within the year. Gohan had nodded, and Goku had dropped him and Jenifyr off at the outfitters'.

'And now here I am, being dragged into looking at **suits** and **dresses** and **shoes**, oh my!' he thought with a mental eye roll. Soon enough, Jenifyr was pointing at a dress and squealing, which Gohan took to mean that she had found one that she liked.

He looked it over, and found that he didn't hate it as much as he'd thought he would. It was a simple red dress with a black cinch around the waist. It had a knee-length skirt and - though Gohan found this odd - one long sleeve, with a strap on the other side where Jenifyr's other arm would go. It was an asymmetrical little red dress.

Gohan scratched his head as Jenifyr called over one of the salespeople and told them that she wanted this dress, and asked if they had a matching suit.

"But of course, young miss," the salesperson said, and took a glance at the red dress before heading off toward the suits. Soon enough, she'd returned with a black suit on a hanger. It was a very dapper suit, Gohan had to admit as he ran his hands over the material. It came with a bow tie the same color as the dress, and it had a rose in the lapel. The cufflinks were also red, and it appeared that the inside of the jacket was red like Jenifyr's dress. It made a rather striking combination, and would look even more so next to Jenifyr's one-sleeved dress.

"Jeni, is this the dress you want?" Gohan asked, and Jenifyr nodded, clapping her hands excitedly. She went back and grabbed the dress and the black heels that went with it, and she and Gohan followed the salesperson to the front counter, where the suit and dress were rung up.

"Is this for the upcoming Homecoming dance?" the salesperson asked, and Gohan and Jenifyr nodded, making the salesperson smile. "That means that you two are lucky enough to get a 20 percent discount," she said, and Jenifyr smiled beamingly at Gohan.

"Lucky us, right, babe?" she asked Gohan, who nodded.

"Lucky us indeed," he said as the salesperson rang up the dress and handed it to Jenifyr, who held it to herself and spun around on one foot.

"What do you think, Gohan?" Jenifyr asked, and Gohan turned his head to look at her as he handed the salesperson Goku's bank card. He studied Jenifyr holding the dress, and found his mind substituting Jenifyr for Videl.

Gohan gave a start as he imagined Videl standing there full of the attitude that he knew was there, though she didn't often show it. He imagined her arms crossed, the red of the dress providing a sharp contrast to her night-black hair and sea-blue eyes. Her hair would be feathered and would hang a bit past her shoulders, and the dress would cling snugly to her frame.

"Gohan?" Gohan snapped himself out of his thoughts to find the salesperson waiting for Gohan to input his father's PIN number and Jenifyr looking at him oddly. "What do you think?" Jenifyr asked again, and Gohan made an affirmative sort of noise.

"It looks great," he said, and Jenifyr beamed at him as he pressed the PIN number into the keypad. After a few seconds, the salesperson nodded and handed Gohan the card, and told them that, should they like to get the outfits fitted, then this date would be the best to come buy. Gohan nodded, and gave the salesperson a smile that she returned, and then he and Jenifyr left.

"Now was that so bad, Gohan?" Jenifyr asked in a patronizing sort of voice, and Gohan rolled his eyes as he opened his cell phone.

"Yes, Jeni, it was horrible. I hope I never have to do it again." 'Not with you, anyway,' a voice said viciously in his mind, and Gohan suppressed his tiny jump at its suddenness and vehemence. He faked a smile as Jenifyr shoved him lightly, and called his dad and told him they were finished.

'Who would I rather do this with?' he asked himself, and found the response to be nearly overwhelming and immediate. He shook his head lightly, and passed it off as a chill when Jenifyr asked what was wrong. 'Homecoming will be interesting, to say the least.'

* * *

Homecoming was here.

Gohan and Jenifyr entered the gymnasium, arms linked. Jenifyr immediately let out a gasp, and Gohan had to admit that it was impressive.

The theme of the Homecoming dance was "On The Up-and-Up". As such, along the outside of the gym on three sides were round tables set with simple white tablecloths, though they had elaborate beading around the edges of the tablecloths. Each table had a white candlestick in a silver holder in the middle of it, and four glass wineglasses were set at each place, upside down upon a simple white plate. Next to each plate was a folded crème-colored napkin, and laid on the opposite side of the plates were the pieces of silverware.

All in all, it was very impressive and looked rather upscale, which Gohan supposed was the point.

"Jenifyr!" a male voice called her name, and she dragged Gohan around to see who'd called her name.

"James!" she said, and Gohan saw that it was James Pickett indeed. And attached to his arm was Videl, who to Gohan looked as though she'd just stepped out of the sky. The sky around the tallest tower of the Castle, since he could see light grey in her dress as well.

Videl, for her part, couldn't seem to take her eyes off Gohan. She couldn't get over how refined he looked. He looked…well, he looked **good**. Like he'd stepped right out of a fancy magazine.

Gohan and Videl were so caught up in each other that Gohan didn't notice Jenifyr's eyes go to James's exposed collarbone, and Videl didn't notice the answering sparkle in James's eyes. Finally, Jenifyr said, "You two look wonderful!" Gohan started and Videl seemed to do the same, though she was much better controlled about it.

"As do the two of you," Videl said quietly, averting her eyes from Gohan. Gohan tried to catch her eye, but she refused to look his way again. Gohan's eyebrows furrowed slightly, but he didn't make any other move to show that he'd noticed Videl, not even when Jenifyr suggested (or demanded, but that depended on how you interpreted it) that they all sit at the same table.

The rest of the night consisted of Gohan and Videl's attempts to ignore each other, while James and Jenifyr made conversation for the four of them. They danced together a couple of times, all four of them, to upbeat dance songs. Gohan found his favorite to be a particular song that marked some beats with what sounded like gunshots, and had synthesized noises that were syncopated and hit more off-notes than beats. It made Gohan dance like a robot to it, coordinating his movements to the gunshot noises. He had a lot of fun dancing to that song.

When they weren't dancing to fast songs, they danced to a couple of slow dances. Gohan and Jenifyr danced together, and so did James and Videl. Then, for the next song, Jenifyr insisted that they switch so that Gohan and Videl danced together, and so did Jenifyr and James.

That dance was far more awkward than it should've been. Gohan kept fighting the urge to bury his face in Videl's cascading hair. The scent of her perfume mixed with the smell of her shampoo washed over Gohan every time they shifted position, and he had to stifle a soft moan.

Videl was having her own difficulties. She found it extremely hard to focus on anything other than the working of Gohan's throat as they dance, since they were still pointedly avoiding each other's eyes. She could feel his heat as they swayed back and forth together, and shivered. Gohan mistook this for a chill that she'd gotten, and pulled her closer, until there was no space between them. She could smell his cologne, but it was subtle, unlike James's, which had assaulted her nose. This seemed to come from Gohan, not lay on top of any other scents. Videl had to keep herself from sticking her nose into Gohan's shoulder and inhaling deeply.

The song began to draw to a close, and Gohan pulled away, looking down at Videl. For the first time since they'd arrived, Videl met his eyes. The lighting made her eyes look bigger and a deeper blue than usual, and Gohan found he could fall in them, if he'd let himself.

Videl couldn't stop thinking about how handsome Gohan was. She felt a small flutter in her stomach as his dark, unreadable eyes moved over her face, seeming to take in every pore of her features. His hair was as wild as ever, looking alluringly tousled. Yet she knew from spending time with Gohan that his hair just grew that way, and that nothing he ever tried made it lie flat for more than three or four minutes. She really wanted to run her hands through his hair.

"Gohan!"

"Videl!"

They both started and jumped apart at the calling of their names by a Jenifyr who was tapping her foot impatiently, and a James who was standing there with his arms crossed.

"Hate to break it to you two, but the slow dances have been over for a while now," James said, gesturing around at the other people at the dance, who were either moving to their tables or dancing to songs that were much more upbeat.

"So if you would get your hands off of my **boyfriend**," Jenifyr said, grabbing Gohan's arm and forcibly tugging him away from Videl. Gohan made a startled noise, and caught Videl's eye once more before she began to avoid his eyes again.

Feeling abruptly exasperated, irritated, and infuriated, Gohan let out a loud, impatient exhale and wrenched his arm from Jenifyr's grasp. He glared at Videl, ignoring Jenifyr's startled, "Gohan!"

"Look, Videl, I don't know what your problem is, but if you can't tell it to me now, then there's no point in listening, not if you don't want to be my friend any more."

Videl started and said, "Gohan, of course I still want to be your friend. But I can't say anything in front of these two." She still refused to meet Gohan's eyes, which only irritated him further.

"Well, why not? Don't you trust your own boyfriend?"

Videl just shook her head and turned and ran. James scowled at Gohan, who abruptly felt as though he was back in seventh grade and James was attacking him again, he the bully and Gohan the victim.

"Gohan, you shouldn't have said that." Of all people, Jenifyr was the one who took it upon herself to reprimand Gohan. "I told you about how Videl feels, and you ignored me and now you've hurt her."

"I can't talk to her if she won't even look at me!" Gohan said, frustrated.

Jenifyr just let out a patient sigh and said, "Go catch up to her. Apologize. I'm sure I can keep James occupied." If there was any undercurrent to her words, Gohan didn't catch them, since he was already following her instructions.

He ran after Videl, dodging past people with muttered apologies and not stopping to hear their returned remarks. 'She can't have gone that far that fast,' he thought. Sure enough, he caught up to her in the school parking lot. She was just standing there, staring up at the sky.

"Videl…" he started, but Videl interrupted.

"No."

"No what?"

"No, I don't trust him. After all he's put you through, I don't trust him with information that his own grandmother gave me, though she did so unwittingly. And if you had half a brain left, you wouldn't trust Jenifyr, either."

"But they've changed, both of them - "

Videl cut across him with a surprisingly sarcastic snort. "On the outside, maybe they have. But look past their skin, past their attempts at friendship and what in the name of Kami you see in Jenifyr, and you'll see that the two of them are planning something."

"So what's your excuse for dating James?" Gohan asked, surprised by the bitterness in his voice.

"Oh, please, Gohan, don't even pull that with me," Videl shot back. "What reason on earth could you have for dating Jenifyr?"

"We have a lot in common, she and I," Gohan replied. "And she liked me, and I was curious to see where it could take us."

"You don't actually love her?"

Gohan let out a surprised snort. "Even if it took her the rest of her life, she would never be able to make up for the twelve years she stood by and gave me evil glares while Michelle, James, and Avery plotted up ways to make my life miserable. No, Videl, of course I don't love her. I don't even know what love would feel like."

Videl bit her lip, then stepped toward Gohan. Her hand went hesitantly up to his face, and he allowed her fingers to brush his cheek before he grabbed her hand. "Videl, I can't do…whatever it is you're doing. I didn't start dating Jenifyr to try and make you spiteful, or to make you jealous. Why would I ever do that to you?"

Videl's lip worrying increased, and she lowered her eyes and her hand and stepped away from Gohan. "Mrs. Pickett, James's grandmother, said she overheard James and Jenifyr talking about the two of us once. I don't know when, I don't know where, but I know she was. I couldn't trust either James or Jenifyr having even the slightest idea that I was suspicious of them. I don't trust them, and neither should you."

Gohan remained silent, even as Videl went to find James so they could leave. Jenifyr came out and found him, interlacing her hand with his, and attempted to find out how things had gone between Videl and Gohan. Gohan only remained silent, staring up at the sky as Videl had done, until Jenifyr finally asked to leave, and Gohan called his mom to come and get them so that Jenifyr could go home.

-TBC-

**A/N II:** As also happens every once in a while, an author comes across two characters whom he or she wants to tell to hurry up and get on with it already. I have encountered those characters in Videl and Gohan. For future reference, the song I was referring to in the Homecoming dance was "Sandstorm" by Darude.

The link for a shortened version of the song (and more likely the better-known version) can be found here: http : // www . jamglue . com / tracks / 361309 - Sandstorm (minus the spaces).

The actual seven-minute, twenty-nine-second-long song can be found here: http : // www . youtube . com / watch ? v = l9Bbu_prxJk (minus the spaces).

Review, please.

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	15. From Zero to Sixty in ThreepointFive

**A/N: **Here's Chapter 12. There's a simple explanation for why this took so long: I hated this story. Absolutely couldn't stand it. Didn't want to write any more.

I took some time away to organize my thoughts and ideas, and now I've finished and this story is beginning to come to its close. Gohan's senior year will span mayhap two or three chapters, and then we're done. The finish line's in sight.

In this chapter, Gohan and Videl have some relationship troubles. ...No, not with each other. They'd have to be together for that to happen. Silly readers.

The title is part of a lyric from "Shut Up and Drive" by Rihanna.

**Warning: **There is swearing in this chapter.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 12 - From Zero to Sixty in Three-point-Five**

Events during Gohan's junior year of high school seemed to progress extremely quickly.

Ever since Videl had mentioned that Mrs. Pickett had told her that Jenifyr and James had been discussing him and Videl, Gohan had been unable to think about much else. Since his mind was so occupied, Jenifyr often asked him what was wrong. Gohan, of course, couldn't tell her what was on his mind, so he always had to make up some sort of excuse. Be it his mother, his father, his friends, school, or tennis, or something else entirely, he made up what he had to.

Jenifyr often complained about Gohan's preoccupation, but Gohan got the feeling that she was really only complaining to complain, much the same way ChiChi did, or used to do. ChiChi no longer posed any sort of negative impact on Gohan, and they were well on their way to becoming close, the way a mother and her child should be. But Gohan's improving relationship with his mother did nothing to keep his relationship with Jenifyr the same.

They often got into little spats now, mostly because Jenifyr felt that Gohan wasn't paying her enough attention, especially ever since Homecoming. The arguments were rarely serious, but Gohan was quickly becoming disillusioned with Ms. Jenifyr Stone. Furthermore, she always seemed to have some sort of look in her eye whenever she looked at Gohan. Like she knew something Gohan didn't. That actually wasn't that much of a surprise, since Jenifyr often looked and acted like that, but it bothered Gohan nevertheless.

It was Gohan's ever-wondering attention that was, unsurprisingly, the subject of today's Argument With Jenifyr.

"Honestly, Gohan, it isn't too much to ask you to at least **look **at me, is it?" Gohan didn't reply. "Obviously, it must be, since you refuse to pay me any more attention. Why in the world did you even ask me to be your girlfriend?"

"I didn't," Gohan said suddenly. "You asked me to be your boyfriend."

"That's beside the point, Gohan! You just don't seem to get it."

Gohan ground his teeth. "No, because I never seem to get much of anything. Why don't you explain this to me, since you obviously know so much more than I do?"

"Way to be mature about this, Gohan," Jenifyr scoffed. "I'm not trying to make you feel stupid or anything. I just want you to act like you enjoy spending time with your girlfriend. Is that really that unreasonable?"

"No, it isn't, but sometimes, my mind is occupied with other things," Gohan replied. "Whether or not you like it, Jenifyr, my universe doesn't revolve around you."

"Well, do I even hold any place in your universe?" Jenifyr demanded. "Do you ever think about me at all, when you go into one of your 'thinking' phases?"

"Yes, actually, I do," Gohan bit out. He couldn't understand why this was irritating him so much right at this moment, but he found himself wishing he were talking to Videl instead of Jenifyr. Truthfully, since Homecoming, he'd made more of an attempt to talk with Videl, who'd done the same. Gohan thought she and James might be going through the same things he and Jenifyr were right now, but that wasn't any of his business.

"'Yes, actually, I do'? Do I get any more of a reply than that?" Jenifyr asked, her voice sounding exasperated. "Kami, Gohan, I get more of a response out of James than you!"

"So go talk to him, then," Gohan snapped, his patience fraying rapidly. "Since he's just **so **responsive when you talk to him. If that's what you do whenever you go to see him."

"What is that supposed to mean?!" Jenifyr all but screeched.

In a feat of boldness Gohan never thought he'd find in that moment, he replied, "Come on, Jenifyr, we're big kids here. You know what that's supposed to mean." A loud slap rebounded across the room as Jenifyr's open hand collided with Gohan's cheek.

The second she'd done so, Jenifyr placed her hands over her mouth, seeming to shrink slightly as Gohan stood. He'd hit another growth spurt over the summer, and he was nearly as tall as his own father, whose head nearly collided with the ceiling fan in Gohan's room.

Gohan stared hard at Jenifyr, his mind, for once, at a complete standstill. "Leave, please," he finally said, his voice eerily quiet, unfathomably deep.

"Gohan, I'm sorry…"

"No. You're not. Leave, please," he said again, this time gesturing toward his door. "I don't believe that you are really all that sorry."

"Gohan, you're acting like I've done something horribly wrong," Jenifyr said, placing her hands on her hips. "You just accused me of cheating on you. Having, if I'm not wrong, an **affair **with James!" Gohan seemed to back down slightly, and Jenifyr had to work to keep herself from smirking. Gohan was always like this. He'd get an idea into his head that he'd follow blindly, but once someone called him on it, he'd back off quickly enough.

"Under the circumstances, I think I'm perfectly justified in doing a lot more than slapping you," she continued, watching Gohan watch her. His eyes remained dark and unreadable, but Jenifyr was fairly sure that she was regaining the control over him she'd become accustomed to having. If things kept up at this rate, he'd be entirely around her finger in the next few minutes.

"I wouldn't just hurt you for the sake of hurting you, Gohan," she said, touching his face where she'd slapped him. Gohan flinched only slightly, but it was enough. "I'm not some harpy who lives to hurt you," she said quietly. She was so close now, she could practically smell it. "I'm not your mother."

Even as she felt Gohan freeze under her hand, Jenifyr was fairly sure that she'd gotten him back under her thumb.

Neither she nor Gohan moved or spoke for a long moment. Finally, Gohan moved, and his hands were pressing down on her shoulders, hard. He steered her forcefully through his bedroom door and to his front door. As he got there, he moved one hand to the middle of her back and grabbed her purse with his other hand, placing it in her arms.

"Gohan, what is this?" Jenifyr asked, and Gohan clenched his jaw to keep from clenching his hands and really hurting Jenifyr.

"Leave."

"What? Why?"

"You aren't my mother. I thought you wouldn't be like her."

"I'm not!"

"Really?" Gohan asked in a nasty tone. "I was under the impression that you weren't controlling, insulting, hurtful, and willing to hit me. I've never hit you, never cheated on you, never done anything to you that merited something like that." Jenifyr made no noise.

"Also, if you paid nearly as much attention to me as you demand I pay to you, you'd know that my mom isn't anything like that. Not any more. I won't ask you again."

"You can't do this to me! I'm your girlfriend!" Jenifyr yelled, and Gohan winced at the amount of noise she was making.

"I can and am doing this, and no. You aren't."

"Are you breaking up with me?!"

Gohan made no reply except to push Jenifyr lightly out the door and close the door softly behind her.

* * *

"How **dare** he?!" Jenifyr screamed as she stormed down the street. "How fucking **dare **he?!" Suddenly, she pressed down on her shoulders lightly and gasped as pain made itself obvious. She pulled out her phone and dialed James's number.

* * *

James sat in the chair at his computer, watching Videl sleep. She looked…peaceful. Yet she also seemed occupied by something. Now that he thought about it, James realized that Videl had been like this since Homecoming. No…even earlier than that. She'd been like that since she'd talked to his grandmother.

Almost as though it had been rehearsed, James's phone rang. Videl started and her eyes blinked open as James hurriedly answered. He'd finally caved and gotten a cell phone at Jenifyr's behest.

"James here," he said, not having bothered to check to see who was calling.

"He broke up with me." It was Jenifyr's voice, but it didn't sound at all mad, like it should've been. It sounded almost…gleeful.

"Gohan did? Why?" James noted out of the corner of his eye how Videl sat up and seemed to become ten times as alert.

"How should I know? This **is **Gohan we're talking about, after all." James noticed with some uneasiness that her voice, which had lately started to soften when she mentioned Gohan, had regained all of its previous hardness and more. She sounded happy, and she sounded determined. James had a nasty feeling that whatever Jenifyr was planning to do wouldn't be good.

"Okay…" he said, unwilling to say much more.

"It's time to put our plan into effect," Jenifyr's voice came over the phone, clear and strong. "But I've got something planned for him that's much, much better than what we were going to do," she continued. "First, I'm going to tell my mother what he did to me. Then…well. You'll see."

Videl was standing up now, her eyes quickly becoming alarmed, and James said, "Jenifyr, keep your voice down…"

"Why? Is that charity case with you? It doesn't matter now, James. Tell her the truth, or get rid of her, or whatever. All bets are off."

James heard the dial tone, and closed his phone.

"So," Videl said. "Are you going to break up with me the easy way, or make it hard, like you actually care about a charity case like me?"

"Videl, babe, don't do that," James said as he ran his hands through his hair. "Jenifyr's just…upset. She liked Gohan. She thought he did, too. Obviously, he didn't, since he broke up with her. I mean, how would you feel if I broke up with you right now?"

"Accepting, since it's what I'm doing with you," Videl replied as she stood and headed for James's door.

"What?" Videl could almost believe James's ploy. But if he had been in this with Jenifyr, then for all she knew, he was just as fake as Jenifyr had shown herself to be.

"You heard me, James," she replied. "I'm breaking up with you. It's like Jenifyr said: 'All bets are off.' Besides, I wouldn't want your friends to think that you actually **fell** for someone like me." Videl turned and walked through the door, hearing James's chair creak.

Suddenly, he was behind her, and turning her to slam her against the wall. "You think you're so smart, Videl," he said as he pinned her to the wall. Videl found that she was completely…unimpressed. James was only acting the way she knew he'd been longing to all along. "For your information, I really did like you." Now Videl was shocked. "But, since you're just a 'charity case', I wouldn't want your friend Gohan to think I was taking advantage of you somehow. Good bye." James abruptly released her and turned and stalked back into his room, slamming his door behind him.

Videl felt mildly ashamed of what she'd apparently put James through just now, but found that she didn't care nearly as much as she cared about what Jenifyr was planning to do to Gohan. Whatever it was, it couldn't be good, and she'd do whatever she could to make sure she was there to help Gohan.

* * *

James waited until he heard his front door shut, and then called Jenifyr. The second she picked up, he said, "She's gone. We're done. Let's hear what you've got."

"I thought you'd never get it over with," Jenifyr's voice was smug. "Now then, first what I need you to do is agree to be my backup. No matter what."

"Whatever you want," James said. "I'm your man."

"That you are, James. That you are."

* * *

Gohan heard the knock on his bedroom door and was disinclined to answer it as he laid on his bed in a white t-shirt and a pair of shorts.

"Gohan." It was his mother. "Gohan, someone's here to see you. She says it's very important." Gohan had told ChiChi what had happened after Jenifyr had left, having heard Jenifyr's yelling. ChiChi had instantly taken Gohan's side on the matter, vowing that she would never let Jenifyr set foot in their home again. It was at that moment that Gohan felt truly happy that his mom was back. They'd hugged, and ChiChi had agreed to tell Goku when he came home from running errands. She'd also agreed to leave Gohan alone unless it was important.

"What does this girl look like?" he asked her through his door, and heard her sigh. He grinned; he couldn't help it.

"She's got black hair and blue eyes, and she's clawing to get past me into your room. Her name rhymes with 'Shmidel Shmilcure'." Instantly, Gohan was on his feet and across the room, his feet making no noise in their socks. He opened the door and ChiChi moved out of the way for Videl to push her way past him into his room.

"I know they're planning something, Gohan," was the first thing out of Videl's mouth as she began pacing. Gohan shook his head as he sat down on his bed.

"Hi, Videl, it's nice to see you, too," he said, and Videl glared at him, though the glare held little real anger at him.

"Hi, Gohan," she said, and Gohan grinned again. He felt somehow lighter since he and Jenifyr had effectively and rapidly made the last two years of their lives irrelevant.

* * *

And that was why Videl had come to see Gohan. Other than letting him know that James and Jenifyr were **definitely** planning something, which Jenifyr had confirmed herself.

Videl had come to see Gohan's smile, which he was of late far more willing to offer at any given time. She still liked seeing him smile, just as much as she ever had. She remembered the odd attraction she'd felt toward the idea of spending more time with Gohan to see if she could get him to smile like that more often. She also felt an odd twinge of jealousy that she wasn't the one who'd made Gohan so willing to smile like that. Knowing Gohan, it was probably Matt, or Emily, or even Jack, though Gohan really only ever talked to Matt and Emily, both of whom had followed him right onto the high school tennis team.

Ignoring the derailment her thoughts had just undergone, Videl stopped pacing and looked at Gohan. "They're planning something."

"How do you know that?" Gohan asked, and Videl proceeded to tell him all that had happened between her and James after Gohan had "shown" Jenifyr out of his house. At the part where Videl mentioned that Jenifyr had called her a charity case, Gohan had grown slightly brooding. When she mentioned that James had pinned her against the wall, Gohan's lip lifted slightly, and she could see the tips of his teeth where they clenched together.

When she had finished, Gohan said, "Those two have a lot of nerve."

"I know!" Videl replied. "Who do they think they are, to try to make you miserable?"

Gohan shook his head and stood from his bed, moving toward Videl, who found herself suddenly frozen. Gohan was much more impressive than James had ever been, especially since his little "transformation" that had been going on all through high school. He'd also managed to develop a talent for leaving people speechless. Videl liked to call it the "Gohan Effect", though she never said it to his face, always thought it to herself.

Gohan was obviously using the Gohan Effect on her right now, though she doubted he realized it. "That wasn't what I was talking about," he said, and though he wasn't looking at Videl, she found that she could only focus on the clenching of his jaw. "It's that Jenifyr called you a charity case and that James felt like he could put his **hands **on you."

Videl stopped breathing for a moment. 'He's not mad about what they're planning to do to him? He'd mad that Jenifyr insulted me and James put his hands on me? What those two do is nothing new, though James never touched me in a way meant to scare or hurt me before now. But still…he's mad about **that**, of all things…' She felt positively warm inside, that Gohan would find such deep offense on her part.

"You're much more than a charity case," Gohan said quietly, finally locking his eyes onto hers. His eyes were as unreadable as ever, but Videl felt that she could see something in them that looked like true anger. She could sense a heat in them as well, and found herself thinking of the id dragon, way up in the Castle that Gohan had built in his mind.

"I know that, Gohan, but that isn't - "

"I think it's very important," Gohan cut across her quietly, and she felt a mild twinge of irritation. It was largely buried under the warm feeling that was still washing across her. 'He thinks it's important…that I'm important.' She already knew that, but it was one thing to know something and to experience the same thing. "And anyone with half a brain would think the same. They'd think you're worth more than someone's pity, and that no one deserves to be manhandled."

"Of course not, but that doesn't change that they're going to find some way to hurt you much worse than either of them hurt me," Videl replied.

"I can handle them."

"So can I." Gohan's head turned to face her again, and Videl willed herself to stay focused. She thought she saw Gohan give a little shake of his head, as though he were trying to reorient himself, but ignored it. "I'm still worried for you, Gohan." And there it was. That's what she'd wanted to tell him since she'd stepped into his room.

* * *

To say that Gohan was shocked would be a lie. To say that he was immensely pleased would be, although rather inappropriate, complete and utter truth. 'She's worried for me,' he thought. 'Even though the worst James and Jenifyr could come up with is nothing but child's play. They don't bother me. But they bother her. On my behalf.'

More than anything, Gohan wanted to relieve Videl of worry about that. "Videl," he said, "Please don't worry."

"But…" she trailed off, and Gohan waited patiently for her to continue. "Jenifyr sounded like she had a very…destructive plan all thought out. She sounded like she'd be willing to do anything to make you pay for breaking up with her." Gohan frowned, but refused to let it worry him. There'd be no point wondering. He'd tackle it when it happened.

"Don't worry about it," he said soothingly. "Whatever it is, you have to know that I can handle it. It's only James and Jenifyr. It's not that big a deal, I promise."

"How can you know?" Videl asked him, and that glint that Gohan admired was back in her eye. The glint that said that she was set in her ways and wouldn't change for anything. Hopefully, Gohan would prove himself to be an exception. He'd get her not to worry.

"I don't, not actually. But I promise that if I'm not worried about it, then it isn't important enough for you to worry about it. C'mere."

"Why?" Videl asked warily, and Gohan raised an eyebrow.

"I can't hug you any more? I didn't know that was a rule," he said, and Videl relented enough to walk into Gohan's embrace. Gohan grinned again as his arms tightened around her and he felt her arms make their way up his back. "It'll be okay. Whatever it is they've got planned, I'll handle it."

"You mean that we'll handle it," Videl replied, and Gohan grinned again. He shouldn't have expected any less. "Whatever it is they've got planned, **we'll** handle it."

"Fine. We will handle it. But you can't do anything until it happens. So don't worry about it." He felt her relaxing unwillingly, and gave into the desire to do something he'd wanted to do since Homecoming. He buried his face in her hair and forcefully controlled his breathing so that it wouldn't seem like he was intoxicating himself with her smell. Even though that's exactly what he was doing.

He honestly wasn't worried about James and Jenifyr. He was mildly curious, but not really worried. He supposed that he should be, since everything that had happened in the day had taken place extremely quickly. He supposed that he should feel rushed and anxious. But standing here, wrapping himself around Videl, he just couldn't bring himself to care.

Time could go as fast as it wanted to. Gohan intended to move as slowly as he pleased.

-TBC-

**A/N II: **Review, please. More to come.

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	16. When We Ride, We Ride

**A/N: **And here's Chapter 13. I actually think that this is one of my favorite chapters, since it has absolutely **zero** drama. That's right! There are no fights, no breakups, nothing like that. This chapter's far more playful than I think any of the chapters yet. It's definitely the lightest chapter I've yet written. Also...well, I'll wait for you to read the chapter instead of chattering more about how much I like this chapter and why.

The title is part of a lyric from "We Ride" by Rihanna. The lyrics in the chapter are to "We Belong Together", by Mariah Carey. I typed the lyrics from memory as best I could, so if there are any inaccuracies or I got any words wrong and you feel like pointing it out, please feel free to do so. Enjoy.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 13 - When We Ride, We Ride**

"You nervous?" Goku asked, and Gohan rolled his eyes at him as he dug around in his pocket.

"Dad, I really can't afford to be nervous, can I?" Gohan replied. "I'm learning to drive, and I'm going to be 17 in a week. If I wanted to be nervous, I wouldn't be sitting here right now."

Goku laughed. "Gohan, there's no need to be so serious about it. You're just driving. I've been doing it for ages."

"No, you haven't," Gohan said, laughing in spite of himself. "You don't like to drive anywhere if you can help it."

"Just because I don't like to doesn't mean that I can't," Goku said, though the smile stayed on his face. "Now then, what's the first thing you do?"

Gohan put a finger to his chin and pretended to think. "Hmm…Um…Uh…"

"Gohan, stop that. What do you do first?"

Gohan sighed and dropped the pretense, and said, "Check your mirrors. After that, you push down the brake and place the key in the ignition. Or you can place the key in the ignition and then push the brake, then turn the key. Put the vehicle in Drive, and take your foot off of the brake, pressing on the gas pedal to accelerate to a suitable speed. When coming to a turn, use your blinkers by moving the lever next to the steering wheel up for right or down for left. If your blinkers do not work, then by sticking your arm out of the window, you can designate a right turn by holding your arm at a 90-degree angle or a left turn by holding your arm straight. To - "

"All right, Gohan. All right," Goku interrupted him. "There's no need to go all textbook on me. Since you know what to do, go ahead and do it." Gohan nodded and adjusted his mirrors before inserting the key ChiChi had had made for him into the ignition. His hand shook slightly, but he ignored it, and Goku didn't call attention to it.

In truth, Goku thought Gohan would make an excellent driver. He just had to make sure that he didn't let his mind get in the way.

'This'll be easy,' Gohan thought, even as he felt his breath starting to come in shorter and shorter bursts as he turned the key and took his foot off of the brake. They didn't move immediately, and Gohan realized that he'd forgotten to put the car in Drive. He winced and looked toward his father, who simply returned the look patiently. 'He isn't yelling, so maybe he hasn't noticed,' Gohan thought hopefully.

"Gohan, why aren't we moving?" His father's voice sounded amused, if anything. Gohan sighed and sat back in the seat.

"Because I didn't change the gearshift to Drive before I took my foot off of the brake," Gohan replied, and Goku nodded.

"So what do you do?"

In reply, Gohan pressed the brake again, moved the gearshift, and took his foot off of the brake. The car moved forward slowly, and Gohan pressed the gas slowly. The car sped ahead and he quickly pressed on the brake to slow down. He turned on his blinker and accelerated into the turn, heading down the main street. "Where to, Dad?" he asked Goku with a smirk.

"Somewhere that isn't a curb would be nice," Goku replied, and Gohan rolled his eyes as he stayed in the middle of the lane.

"Unless they have curbs in the middle of the street, I don't think that'll be a problem," he replied sarcastically, and Goku sighed. "Seriously, Dad, where am I going?"

"Why not Videl's house?" Gohan looked at him for a split second, then turned his head back to the road before Goku could tell him to do so. "Take her for a spin? A wild ride? Night on the town?"

"Dad, you're a dork," Gohan said with a laugh, and Goku shrugged.

"Don't pretend you don't like the idea. You want to go get Videl?"

"I'm just the driver," Gohan said, but he stopped at the traffic light and made the turn onto the road leading to Videl's street nonetheless.

He pulled up to her house, and looked at Goku. "What?" Goku asked.

"Go get her."

"Why?"

"Coming here was your idea!"

"Yes, but she's **your** friend." Gohan sighed, seeing that he wasn't going to win this game, yet at the same time indescribably happy. He hadn't had any chance to spend time like this with his father for a long time, just them, bantering back and forth. He unbuckled and got out of the car. Walking up to Videl's front door, he attempted to surreptitiously flatten his hair. It didn't work, and he sighed.

He rang the doorbell, and listened to the sound of footsteps approaching the door. It opened to reveal a woman he hadn't seen in nearly four years. Not since eighth grade. "Hello, Felicia," he said with a smile, one that Mrs. Filcure mirrored.

"Well, hello, Gohan," she said. "It's been so long since I last saw you. You got tall."

"Yes," Gohan said with a laugh. Then, because he was curious, he asked, "How goes la clase de español?"

Mrs. Filcure smiled again and said, "It's going well. I'm going to retire the year Videl graduates, though."

"What?" Whenever Gohan had talked to Videl about her mother, she'd never told him this. "That's this year! Why?"

"I've just been teaching for a long time, that's all," Mrs. Filcure replied. "I want to take some time to pursue other interests of mine. It isn't because I don't like teaching any more. I guess you could call it a sabbatical, if nothing else."

"Does Videl know?" Gohan asked, and Mrs. Filcure shook her head.

"I sort of wanted it to be a bit of a surprise. She used to complain sometimes about having a mom who was so focused on teaching all the time. I figured I'd spend her last summer before she goes off to university or wherever she goes with her, doing whatever she wants to do."

"That's wonderful of you, Felicia," Gohan said with a smile. Mrs. Filcure beamed back at him.

"I can see what Videl was talking about," she said suddenly, and Gohan cocked his head to one side. "You do have a very nice smile," she elaborated, and Gohan blinked. "Oh! I suppose you came to see her for something, didn't you? And here I've been, monopolizing your time," Mrs. Filcure said.

"Oh no, it was nice to talk to you," Gohan said quickly. "But yes, I did come to see if Videl wanted to go for a ride with my father and I."

"I suggest you ask her," Mrs. Filcure replied, and ushered Gohan inside.

Goku watched the door shut behind him, and smiled, putting the car in Park and taking the key out of the ignition.

"Where is she?" Gohan asked as Mrs. Filcure ushered him through the house.

"She's just in her room. You can go right ahead in," Mrs. Filcure replied. For some reason, she had a rather wide grin on her face. If Gohan didn't know any better, he'd say that Mrs. Filcure was trying to set something up.

As he got closer to what he surmised was Videl's room, he could hear a piano introduction playing, and someone singing something. He didn't know what the song was, but as Mrs. Filcure left him be and he turned the doorknob silently to see, he quickly figured out. What he figured out made him rather uncomfortable, but he hid it as best he could.

Videl wasn't facing him, she was sitting at her computer, singing along to a song. She had a lovely voice, one that seemed to hold Gohan spellbound. He listened as Videl, clad in nothing but a tank top and pajama shorts, sang along.

"_I didn't mean it when I said I didn't love you so,  
I should have held on tight, I never should have let you go,  
I didn't know nothing, I was stupid, I was foolish, I was lying to myself.  
__I could not fathom that I would ever be without your love,  
__Never imagined I'd be sitting here beside myself,  
__Guess I didn't know you, guess I didn't know me,  
__But if I'd have known everything I never felt._

"_The feeling that I'm feeling now that I don't hear your voice,  
__Or have your touch and kiss your lips 'cause I don't have a choice,  
__Oh, what I wouldn't give to have you lying by my side,  
__Right here, 'cause baby…_

"_When you left I lost a part of me,It's still so hard to believe  
__Come back, baby, please, 'cause w__e belong together.  
__Who else am I gonna lean on when times get rough?  
__Who's gonna talk to me on the phone 'til the sun comes up?  
Who's gonna take your place, there ain't nobody better.  
__Oh baby, baby, we belong together._"

Gohan found himself transfixed by Videl as she sang. She seemed to put her heart and soul into what she was singing. He started to walk closer, and stopped just behind her, making no noise.

Videl heard the doorbell ring, but her favorite song came on her playlist, and she had to sing along. She felt obligated to, ever since she'd first heard the song about a year ago. It had been while she was dating James, and it was just after Homecoming. It had come on the radio, and she'd been held transfixed by the soulful tone of the singer, the overwhelming music. The emotion that had been conveyed through the song that Videl identified with so strongly.

She'd gotten a lot wiser since then, but the only thing she remained convinced of was that this song seemed to speak to and for her. If only she could sing this song to **him**, then he'd know how she felt. Sighing, she began to sing. As she sang, she began to feel emotion rising in her chest. When she got to the chorus, she let it out as loud as she wanted. She was all alone except for her mother, and her mom always complimented her singing, so why should she worry? The second verse came, and she sang still.

"_I can't sleep at night when you are on my mind.  
__Bobby Womack's on the radio, saying to me,  
_'_If you think you're lonely now…' __Wait a minute this is too deep, too deep,  
I gotta change the station so I  
__Turn the dial, trying to catch a break,  
__And then I hear Babyface, 'I Only Think of You,'  
__And it's breaking my heart.  
__I'm trying to keep it together, but I'm falling apart._

"_I'm feeling all out of my element,  
__Throwing things, crying, trying to figure out where the hell I went wrong.  
__And the pain reflected in this song ain't even half of what I'm feeling inside.  
__I need you, need you back in my life, baby…_

"_When you left, I lost a part of me.  
__It's still so hard to believe.  
__Come back, baby, please, 'cause we belong together.  
__Who else am I gonna lean on when times get rough?  
Who's gonna talk to me on the phone 'til the sun comes up?  
__Who's gonna take your place, there ain't nobody better.  
__Aw, baby, baby, we belong together, baby!_"

This next part was Videl's favorite, since it let her belt out the lyrics as loud as she pleased.

"_When you left, I lost a part of me.  
__It's still so hard to believe.  
__Come back, baby, please, 'cause we belong together.  
__Who am I gonna lean on when times get rough?  
Who's gonna talk to me 'til the sun comes up?  
__Who's gonna take your place, there ain't nobody better.  
__Oh, baby, baby, we belong together…_"

She let her voice trail off until the song ended, then let out a deep sigh. "If only you knew," she whispered.

"If only who knew what?"

Gohan hadn't been planning to say anything, but Videl had looked so…complete, after she'd finished the song. Then she'd whispered something, and Gohan found the words leaving his mouth before he knew what was happening.

"If only who knew what?" he asked, and stepped back as Videl jumped about a mile out of her seat and stood, spinning around quickly.

"G-Gohan?! What are you doing in my room?!" she screamed, sounding on the edge of hysteria.

Holding his hands up warily in a placating gesture, Gohan moved backward, saying, "Your mother told me it was okay! Then once I'd opened the door and saw you sitting there, I didn't want to disturb you. I was going to leave quietly, but then…"

"Then what?!"

"Then you started singing," Gohan replied quietly. "And I couldn't go anywhere. You held me captive. Sorry…I'll just leave now."

"No wait, wait!" Gohan paused and looked at Videl with an eyebrow raised. "You…liked my singing?"

"It was the best I've ever heard," Gohan said honestly. Videl blushed, and Gohan grinned suddenly. That reminded him of something Videl's mother had said, and he asked Videl. "What did you tell your mother about my smile?"

"What?" Videl had jumped again, as she'd started to search for clothes to wear in an attempt to hide her extreme embarrassment at being found in underclothes by Gohan, singing along to a song on her computer. She was also trying to hide the giddiness she felt at Gohan's admission about her singing. But Gohan's latest comment had caught her off-guard again.

"Your mother told me that what you had said was true, and that I had a nice smile. What did you tell her?" Gohan asked, truly curious. He knew what **he** thought was nice about Videl, a whole myriad of things ranging from her hair to her eyes to her curves to her frank attitude to her ability to keep a cool head to the fact that she'd remained his friend since seventh grade and had known him since kindergarten.

Videl seemed to be horribly embarrassed, but she squared her shoulder and looked him in the eye, and said, "I told her that your smile lit up your whole face. It made your eyes light up, and showcased your brilliant teeth. I told her that your smile is positively contagious, and that to see it is to have a glimpse of the kind of happiness that only ever finds a few people in life."

Gohan blinked as Videl talked, and remained silent after she finished. ChiChi had told him that he had a cute smile, but he'd disregarded that, since she was his mother and had to say things like that to him. But to hear Videl say that she thought so much of his smile…He decided to test out the truthfulness of her words.

He let a tentative grin cross his face, and watched as the corners of Videl's mouth quirked upward. His grin widened, and stayed there until Videl finally smiled back at him. "See?" she asked him, sounding half-exasperated, half-happy. "It's contagious. I wish that…" she trailed off suddenly, and Gohan's smile vanished as she looked downward.

"You wish that what?" he asked, moving closer to her, concerned. She'd been so candid with him earlier, he was wondering if something had happened to make her sad or…something. He didn't know what, but he was concerned anyway.

She muttered something, and Gohan frowned. "I'm sorry?"

"I said that I wish that I could make you smile like that more often, okay?" Videl said, snapping her head up to find Gohan's face inches from her own. Gohan heard her tiny intake of breath, and pressed his lips to hers.

In that moment, Gohan found perfect bliss. Kissing Videl felt like…something he should've been doing long before now. 'Why haven't I been?' he wondered as Videl's hands came cautiously up to rest against the sides of his neck. From there, they moved up in a seemingly instinctual movement to the nape of Gohan's neck, where the fingers tangled themselves in the sparse hairs, making Gohan sigh. Videl, either fortunately or unfortunately - Gohan wasn't sure which - Videl seemed to take this as an invitation to kiss him more boldly.

Her hands tightened in his hair as the fingers raked across his scalp, and Gohan moaned as he quickly felt himself caught up in this spark that he had a sneaking suspicion had been a long time living. His own hands came up to frame Videl's face as their faces pressed closer together until their teeth clinked slightly. She tasted like spearmint and smelled like strawberries. Gohan couldn't get enough of her.

If this didn't make Gohan smile, Videl was fairly sure that she'd be smiling nonstop for days. **This** is what she had wanted from Gohan, even more than his company or even his smile. She'd wanted to see happiness in his eyes up close, wanted to run her hands through his always messy hair. Wanted to kiss him like this.

He smelled…clean. And like that cologne he'd worn at Homecoming. Videl was quickly coming to believe that she was utterly addicted to that smell.

He tasted like cinnamon, which Videl had never liked as a taste of toothpaste before now. Now, except for spearmint, she was fairly sure it would become her favorite toothpaste.

His eyes were closed, and Videl pulled away slightly, making Gohan's eyes open in confusion. At that moment, Videl had a clear glance into Gohan's soul. She saw a powerful fire hidden deep in his dark eyes, and knew that that was the id dragon's fire. But around and in front of and behind that fire was a sea of contentment and happiness. Tingeing it was a different sort of heat. One that would make Videl flush if she thought about it for too long.

She was content with the happiness that glinted in his eyes, eyes that moved closer as his lips reconnected with hers. Her eyes slid shut of their own accord, and she knew that they couldn't just kiss all the time. Well…they could, but that was beside the point.

She pulled away entirely, and giggled when Gohan let out a tiny, petulant moan. His own eyes opened, and he smiled that contagious grin of his, and Videl felt her own mouth stretch into a smile to match Gohan's. "Maybe you can, Videl," Gohan said quietly, his breathing slightly heavy. "Maybe you can."

"Can what?" Videl asked, and Gohan shook his head.

"Make me smile, Videl. Kami knows you've gotten good enough at it. I'm pretty sure you can make me smile any time you want to." He reached out and grabbed Videl's hand, interlacing his fingers with hers, grinning as he did so. "If you want to, that is."

"Gohan, you're a dork," Videl said with a tiny giggle, and Gohan grinned.

"I know. It's why you've stayed around all these years, right?" he asked jokingly, and Videl shook her head.

"Whatever you say, Gohan. So, what are you doing here? Assuming you didn't come to hear my amazing singing and then try and kiss me senseless, that is."

"I didn't manage to make you senseless?" Gohan asked, and he sounded genuinely disappointed.

"No, but you did come close," Videl said playfully, and Gohan grinned.

"Well, then I'll have to keep trying," he said in an offhand tone, and Videl froze. Gohan looked at her, and raised his eyebrows. "Assuming you want me to keep trying, that is."

Videl put a finger to her chin, tapping it and pretending to think. Finally, when she felt Gohan had just about reached the end of his patience, she said, "I think we can arrange for you to keep trying until you succeed." The grin that made its way onto Gohan's was the widest she'd ever seen, and she smiled in reply.

"Also, my dad was wondering if you wanted to come for a ride with the two of us," Gohan said next, and Videl laughed and shook her head.

"If you'll let me get ready, then yes, I'd be more than willing to accompany the two of you," she replied, and Gohan bowed as he left her room. 'He came to ask me if I wanted to ride. Then it turned into…something else. Well, either way, it'll still be quite the ride. One that I intend to see through to the end.'

-TBC-

**A/N II:** Like I said, largely happy chapter, very little drama if any at all. Review, please!

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	17. The Albatross Begins With Its Vengeance

**A/N: **Here's the next chapter, and it's the one that I'm fairly sure will make a lot of you hate me. I beg of you, after you finish this chapter, remember that her story is flimsy and, though believable on the surface, will not stand up to deeper inspection. This whole charade will last until the next chapter, and then it'll be over, and we can move on. Just...please stay with me. Also, keep in mind that this is a very childish plan on Jenifyr's part, and the consequences for what she did will be severe. ...As severe as they can be, given the circumstances, that is.

In other story-related news, this chapter does contain a scene that, while not a lemon in and of itself, could easily have become one if that's what I'd planned for it to do. Just giving a bit of forewarning.

This chapter is also a cliffhanger, one that I hate to leave you all with, but it will be resolved in the very next chapter. I promise. If you don't want to be left with a cliffhanger, just stop reading at the horizontal line, and then continue at the next update.

I don't think you'll enjoy reading the chapter, since I certainly didn't enjoy writing it, but I hope that you won't leave the story forever in anger and never finish it.

The title is part of a lyric from "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" by Iron Maiden, based on the poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 14 - The Albatross Begins With Its Vengeance**

Gohan knew something was special today. He couldn't remember what it was, since he was half-asleep and still dreaming.

_He was sitting in a circular room with three circular windows. The windows were situated in a triangle, and the window at the top of the triangle had a carving around it that made it look as though it were in the center of a small fire. The window that took the right bottom corner of the triangle had carvings on either side that made it seem like the window had wings. The last window had curved carvings that arced off the sides of the window, making it look like a star with four curved points._

_He was fairly sure that he was not alone in this room, but wherever he looked, except for the three windows, there were only shadows. Twisting, amorphous black clouds that were always undulating sinuously, yet never made a sound. The dark shadows simply…existed. The three windows were akin to three beacons of light in this swirling darkness, and he wanted to look through those windows. But he couldn't move. He felt tied down._

_Quite suddenly, the three windows were still there, but they were situated in a brown wall that looked to be made of wood, instead of swirling shadows like the walls of the circular room. He was sitting in a chair this time, and he ran his hands along the mahogany armrests as his feet, in polished black shoes, tapped against the sanded wooden floor. He sat at a desk on one side of the room, near the front, where there was a large podium with a high-backed chair behind it. _

_On his right was a wooden barrier that was connected to another wooden barrier on the other side of the room by a pair of flapping doors. Behind him, he became aware that there were a number of chairs lined up in rows, all the way back to the pair of double doors that seemed to be the entrance into this room. _

_It occurred to Gohan that he was in a court room, or something very much like it. As though it had been a trigger, suddenly there were people behind him, a man in a suit on his immediate right and a comforting presence on his left. The comforting presence had soft hands, one of which it interlaced with his as he looked up at the podium in front of the room. A person in judge's robes was making her way toward the podium. How he knew it was a girl, he did not know. But he knew the judge was female._

_She sat behind the podium, and then there was a glaring light shone on her._

_It was Jenifyr Stone. She was the judge, and she was presiding over a trial in which Gohan was the defendant. "How do you plead?" she asked in a voice full of authority._

"_Not guilty!" Gohan said desperately. He felt very anxious all of a sudden, like he __**had**__ to get out of that court room, or he would be sent somewhere far away for a crime he didn't commit. "Not guilty! I didn't do anything!"_

"_The jury deliberates," Jenifyr said, turning to a jury that was composed entirely of one person: James Pickett. _

_He gave an evil grin and immediately said, "We find him guilty! Guilty, guilty, guilty!" _

"_No…No, I'm not guilty!" Gohan cried as a looming shadow that seemed to be made of the same swirling, shadowy substance that the circular room's walls had been made of grabbed him by the arm and began to lead him away. As it did so, Gohan called out repeatedly, "I didn't do anything! I didn't do it, I tell you! I'm __**not guilty**__!"_

"_I'll get you free, Gohan!" the comforting presence he'd felt at his left yelled. "I'll get you out of there! I know you're innocent!"_

Gohan snapped wide awake and sat bolt upright in his bed, heaving as though he'd just run a marathon. He looked around his room, which was the same as it had always been, with the exception of a change in decoration as he'd gotten older. Yes, he was still in his bedroom, there was no court room.

He let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding, and rubbed his face with one hand as he got out of bed. He opened his window to have the sun come bursting into his room, making him blink furiously.

As he walked toward his closet, intending to put on some clothes, a loud knock sounded at his door, making him start so badly his arm shot out and his hand hit the wall. Taking deep breaths, unable to understand why his dream had unnerved him so deeply, he attempted to make his voice sound natural as he said, "Yes, what is it?"

"Gohan, hurry up and come into the living room!" It was ChiChi, knocking on the door like she was trying to break it down. Gohan told her he'd be right out, then sighed as he began rummaging through the dresser in his closet to grab a pair of boxers and socks. He threw some clothes on, not really paying attention to what he was wearing as he scratched his scalp, making his hair stand up even worse than it usually did.

As he walked into the living room, he found himself being tackled by Videl and a loud cheer going up all around him. His ears rang as Videl let him get back up, and he wasn't able to make sense of what anyone was saying. It wasn't until Videl kissed him on the cheek and whispered, "Today's July 31st, Gohan," that he understood what was special about today, and what everyone was shouting.

"Happy birthday, Gohan!" He grinned and hugged Videl, and then made his way through the living room toward his parents, both of whom were grinning fit to split.

He hugged both of them, pretending to shy away as ChiChi kissed his cheek and Goku ruffled his hair, making it stand up yet worse. "Thanks, you guys," he said to them. "Although I'd wish you'd have let me shower before you'd made me come out here with all these people." ChiChi shook her head with a wave of her hand while Goku grinned sheepishly.

"Probably," Goku agreed, making Gohan roll his eyes. "Sorry, son. D'you want to go take a shower, then?"

"That'd be nice," Gohan said, and turned and walked into the bathroom, locking and closing the door behind him. He shucked his clothes quickly and stepped into the shower stall, closing the fogged glass door. He turned the shower on and let the warm water cascade down his body, sighing as he placed his hands on the wall to brace himself.

After he'd finished his shower, he wrapped a towel around himself as he wiped off the mirror so that he could see. He ran his fingers through his hair, making it artfully tousled, as opposed to bedhead tousled. He turned his head from one side to the other, lifted his chin, angled his face so as to look at his hair from all angles. Recently, he'd started growing a beard in earnest. However, his mother always made him shave it, so he'd only gotten it back to an all-around shadowing across his jaw and over his upper lip.

He continued to study himself in the mirror, until the doorknob turned behind him. He spun around to watch the door, remembering that he'd locked it. He remembered in the next second that the door locked from the outside. He was sure that people had seen him coming into the bathroom, and so they'd know to leave the bathroom alone until he'd reemerged.

The door opened, and Videl stood in the doorway. She stared for a split second before shutting the door behind her. "Er, Videl, I'm in the bathroom," Gohan said quietly.

"I know," she replied softly, her eyes looking him up and down. Gohan felt slightly uncomfortable under her gaze, though he couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was that was making him uneasy.

"Did…did you need something?" he asked, and Videl nodded her head. From time to time, she'd catch a glimpse of Gohan in workout clothes that consisted of a tight grey t-shirt and baggy, black basketball shorts with their high school insignia of an orange star in a white circle with a white letter "H" in the middle. The shirt left very little to the imagination, and Gohan seemed so seamless to Videl that it wasn't hard for her to imagine the rest of him.

"Er, what…what can I do for you?" Videl stepped forward, causing Gohan to stutter. All she could do was stare, and feel a smug sort of satisfaction that this gorgeous man was Gohan. Her boyfriend, **her** Gohan.

Her eyes started at his still damp, unruly hair that he seemed only too inclined to let her mess up how she would. They moved down to his face, with his squared jaw, straight nose, thin lips, and shadowed beard. He'd inherited his father's good looks, and since Goku was 35 and looked 25, Videl had reason to suspect that Gohan would look amazing for a long time yet.

He'd retained that unreadable quality about his eyes, too, the quality that made Videl want to look deep into his eyes for time untold, trying to see all of his secrets, all of his soul. Even though she knew that he'd bared far more of his soul to her than he had to almost anyone else.

She realized, vaguely, that she still hadn't answered Gohan's question, and that he was becoming steadily more tense and unsure the longer she let the silence stretch. She fixed him with her sweetest smile, and said, "Well, Gohan, since you're standing in front of me, soaking wet and in a towel…You get three guesses as to what you can 'help me with'."

Gohan's eyes widened at Videl's insinuation. They were standing in his house, in his bathroom, and he was all but naked, and Videl was here in the bathroom with him, and -

His brain stuttered to a stop as Videl's hands pressed on his shoulders. Riding on base instinct, Gohan closed his eyes and shuddered as Videl ran her fingernails down his torso. Her hands were everywhere, rubbing across his still cool skin, making him heat up on contact. Her hands made their way up into his hair as she yanked his head down, and buried her face in his neck.

Videl could feel Gohan's Adam's apple move up and down as he swallowed, and half-smiled that she'd caught him off-guard so badly. She'd managed to make it seem as though she was trying to go to the restroom while Gohan was in the shower. Even though she'd heard the water shut off as she was asking Goku and ChiChi if they thought Gohan would be in the shower long enough for her to use the restroom.

She inhaled deeply, letting out a soft sigh as his scent invaded her nostrils. He smelled like he had when they'd kissed in his room. Only now that clean smell was mixed with the smell of his body wash, and Videl loved it. It was as if no matter what Gohan did, he'd always smell…well, **good**.

Videl kissed his Adam's apple lightly, smiling when he shuddered again. Her fingers remained in his hair, twirling the strands around them as she nuzzled the hollow in the middle of his collar bone. He let out a deep sigh, and Videl lifted her head to look into his eyes, which for once, were utterly clear. She realized then that his eyes had specks of dark, almost midnight blue in them. She'd never seen anyone with that color in their eyes before.

Gohan, being able to regain some motor control while holding eye contact with Videl, pressed his lips to hers, his now-dry hands sliding around her waist and under her t-shirt to be in contact with her soft, soft skin. He pressed forward, making Videl's head tilt slightly back, and traced her bottom lip with his tongue. She sighed, and Gohan's tongue delved into her mouth while his hands pushed up at her t-shirt, making it ride up until she let him tug it lightly over her head.

His hands went back down to her waist, spinning them around so that Videl was against the counter. He pushed up at the same time Videl hopped, so that she was sitting on the counter as their kiss continued. Gohan pulled away eventually to rub his beard against the side of her neck, making her hands tighten in his hair.

Just as Videl's hands left Gohan's hair, moving toward his towel, a knock sounded on the door, making both of them start, that charge in the air between them momentarily gone.

"Videl? Are you finished in there? I'm sure Gohan would like to come out of the shower sometime today," ChiChi's voice came through the door, and Gohan gave Videl a lopsided grin as he nosed the hollow of her collar bone the same way she'd done to him. Then, he moved away and picked up Videl's shirt, handing it to her. She took it and put it on, making herself look presentable while Gohan watched her, that lopsided grin never quite leaving his face.

He didn't say a word as she turned around and opened the door to leave, and rubbed his jaw after she'd left as he turned back around to restyle his hair…again.

About fifteen minutes later, Gohan emerged from the bathroom to shouts of joy and celebration. He grinned again; he couldn't help it. Now that he felt sufficiently awake - more thanks to Videl than to the shower - he could focus on who had showed up to this little party his parents had apparently organized. Videl and Felicia were there, and so was Matt, with Missy and Geoffrey in tow. Emily had also shown up and had brought her father, Jedidiah, and her stepmother, Barbara.

Also there were Kathryn Stevenson and Evan Williams, the two players from East City Middle School who'd played against Matt and Emily all those years ago. They'd gone to Orange Star High and had joined the tennis team - no surprises there - and they'd become fast friends with Gohan, Matt, and Emily.

Gohan said hello to all of them, unable to do anything but smile. They'd all set today aside from their schedules Kami knew how far in advance, just to come to a party he'd had no idea he was having. It made him feel unbelievably happy, to know that, since seventh grade, he'd gone from having no friends except his father to having four close friends and a girlfriend.

In addition, he and his mother were finally close the way they'd always wanted to be, and Gohan had kept a running friendship with Felicia, the Jassos, and the Morganes. He felt extremely lucky, especially when he looked back at his expectations for the rest of his life on the first day of seventh grade.

Emily gave him a hug, and so did Felicia, Missy, and Barbara. Matt gave him the male equivalent of a hug, which consisted of a lot less physical contact and a lot more backslapping. Geoffrey shook his hand warmly, and Jedidiah gave him a one-armed hug. After he'd made his way around the room, Videl hooked his arm in her own as Goku and ChiChi came over.

"Don't you want your birthday gift?" Goku asked, and Gohan raised an eyebrow. The party was enough of a gift, and he told his father so. He kept his encounter with Videl a secret, since, after all, Goku and ChiChi didn't really need to know about his and Videl's bathroom activities, did they? Of course not.

"That's silly, Gohan," ChiChi said with a smile. "You're 17; we know better. Your gift is outside." If the way Videl's grip on his arm had tightened was any indication, Gohan was going to really like his gift.

He walked outside, and wasn't disappointed. He felt his jaw drop as he became completely still, looking at the car in the driveway.

"That's…that's a Pegasus RZ Convertible," he said absently, and Videl laughed and nodded.

"Goku and ChiChi were at a loss as to what to get you when they began to plan for your birthday. I suggested that they get you a car, since you do have your license and everything. I didn't suggest **this** car, though, judging from your reaction, you like it."

"Are you joking me?!" Gohan said, seemingly shocked out of movement suddenly. He tugged Videl behind him as he walked quickly toward the car. He ran a hand across the glossed black hood, completely silent as he looked at his reflection in the dark finish. The inside of the car was an unknown color, since the seats had seat covers on them. The seat covers were black, with a red dragon seeming to curl around the seat and rest its head on the top of the headrest.

Goku and ChiChi stood outside, watching their son inspect his new car. "Think he likes it?" Goku asked quietly, and ChiChi laughed as she nodded.

"I think he **loves** that car," she replied, and Goku smiled as he nodded in agreement.

Meanwhile, Gohan had come to the driver's side seat and had bent over the door to look at the dashboard. His eyes found the ignition, and the key in it with a dragon keychain. He smiled and shook his head as he took the key out of the ignition and pocketed it. "So much dragon stuff," he commented idly, and Videl nodded.

"That was mine, Emily, and Matt's contribution," she said. "Because of, you know, the TTC. Although, I got you the keychain." Gohan knew the dragon to which she was referring now, and squeezed her hand in thanks as they walked back to his parents.

"I…I don't know what to say," he said to them, and Goku and ChiChi laughed.

"A thank you would be more than enough," ChiChi said with a smile, and Gohan smiled back.

"Thank you, then, Mom, Dad. This is…far more than I ever expected. Ever."

"That's what we figured," Goku replied. "I'm just glad you like it so much. I've always been a fan of Pegasus cars myself, and since I don't really know what sort of cars you like, since you never say much about it, I just went with what I knew."

"It's amazing, Dad, it really is," Gohan said, hugging his father. "Thank you so much. I'm almost scared to drive it," he continued with a small laugh as he hugged his mother.

"Well, fat load of good it would do sitting here looking pretty since you're afraid to drive it," Goku said in a mock stern voice, and Gohan raised his hands in a conciliatory gesture.

"All right, all right, if you insist, then I guess I'll have to drive it," he said with a grin, one that Goku, ChiChi, and Videl all matched with grins of their own. "This is the best birthday I've had yet," Gohan said as he called to Matt, Emily, Kathryn, and Evan. "I'm gonna go drive my awesome new car now!" he said, and Goku and ChiChi laughed as he jumped into the driver's seat, Videl slid into the passenger seat, and Matt, Emily, Kathryn, and Evan piled in the back, Matt and Evan sitting up on the back of the seat.

* * *

"Are you ready?" she asked, and he nodded.

"Yes, although this does seem like a little much…"

"Oh, shut up," she said dismissively. "If you're going to back out now, of all times, then I don't know why you decided to help me plan this."

"I'm not backing out," he said hastily. "I just don't think you should accuse him of this, of all things."

"Well, too late," she replied as she pressed three numbers on her cell phone.

"Hello, what is the nature of your emergency?" the voice that came through the earpiece was cool, detached, almost as though he were reading from a textbook.

She made sure to place tiny sobs in her voice as she spoke. "H-hello…I've j-just…I've just been raped!" She burst into sobs that she made as convincing as she could. Immediately, the voice became much warmer and more human as he inquired as to her name, address, and the name of who had raped her.

"His…his name is G-Gohan…Gohan Sondë," she stuttered out, and she heard the sound of a keyboard clicking. The man recited Gohan's name and address and she confirmed that that was who she was talking about.

"All right, miss, if you're feeling like it, then we'll send a doctor to your home with a kit to - "

"No, please, don't let anyone else touch me!" she interrupted, sobbing. "I…I can't, please don't make me…"

"Hey, hey, miss, that's all right," the man said kindly. "Well, then we'll get a DNA sample from this Mr. Sondë, as well as a sample from the place where…it happened."

"Oh, I'm so s-sorry," she said, making an effort to sound as though she were calming down slightly, yet still remaining on the verge of hysteria. "But…I couldn't bear to have his…him all over my bedclothes, so I threw them in the washing machine. I'm so sorry, I've wrecked the whole thing for you, haven't I?! I'm so sorry, I just…I c-couldn't - "

"Miss, that's perfectly all right. You seem like an honest young woman, so we'll go ahead and see what we can do about this. Is there anything you need at the moment?"

"N-no…I h-h-have my boyfriend here with me, and he's comforting me…Thank you, though. I r-really app-ppreciate all th-that you're d-d-doing for me." She burst into sobs again, and nodded as the man on the other end of the line offered comforting words before hanging up. She smirked as she shut her phone, and looked to the boy, who was shaking his head.

"You're far too good at lying for it to be healthy," he said, and she waved his remarks off. "So what now?" he asked.

"Now, we wait," she said with a grin.

'I just hope she doesn't get caught up in her lies,' he thought as he watched her. 'Because now that I've gotten involved in this, we're both at stake. I really hope she can get through this with no evidence other than her word.'

Just then, something occurred to him. "How will you continue to pretend that you've been raped if you're still a virgin?"

"They don't know I'm still a virgin, since I'm 'too uncomfortable' for them to use a rape kit," she said. He nodded, still unsure of this, but he kept his concerns to himself. The first domino had been toppled; all that was left was to see where the rest would fall.

* * *

That night, Gohan was sitting with Videl, Felicia, and his parents in the living room. Everyone else had left, though Matt and Emily promised to come back the very next day so they could hang out. "So did you really enjoy today, Gohan?" ChiChi asked, and Gohan nodded emphatically.

"Today was the best day of my life to date," he said, an arm looped over Videl's shoulders as she sat curled on the couch, leaning her back against his chest. "I wouldn't change any of it."

"I'm glad," Goku said, just as a loud pounding sounded on the front door.

"Police! Open up!" a sharp bark burst through the door, making everyone instantly alert. Gohan got up and walked quickly to the front door, opening it to find two policemen standing on the front step.

"Gohan Sondë?" one of them asked, and Gohan nodded. The other policeman grabbed Gohan, spinning him around roughly. Gohan heard the click of handcuffs, and began to panic.

"What did I do?" he asked loudly, while Goku, ChiChi, Videl, and Felicia all rushed to the door, demanding the same thing.

"You have the right to remain silent," the policeman who'd handcuffed him said. "Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law…"

"I demand to know what I'm being arrested for!" Gohan demanded, cutting the policeman off.

"You're being charged with rape, Mr. Sondë."

"Rape?!" all five of the people who weren't policemen yelled at the same time. "Who in the name of Kami did I rape?" Gohan asked incredulously, even as he was being dragged toward the police car idling at the curb. The others followed, and so they heard and were utterly shocked - on the part of Goku, ChiChi, and Felicia - and disgusted - on the part of Videl - by the answer.

"Jenifyr Stone."

-TBC-

**A/N II:** The next chapter is coming very soon, and this whole thing will be resolved. Again, I promise. In other news, I got the idea for the car "Pegasus RZ" from the real-life Mustang GT series of cars. I love those cars far more than I should.

Review, please. Flame me if you want, but I'd suggest you save it for the resolving chapter, and then flame me and tell me what you think of how I resolved it. I'm fairly sure that I'm going to...well. You'll just have to wait and see. Next chapter: the aftermath of Jenifyr's false accusation.

But, just in case someone decides to let me know what they think right now...*ties a blindfold around his head after writing his Last Will and Testament*

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	18. Take This Final Piece of Advice

**A/N:** And here's the chapter in which Jenifyr gets what's coming to her, and a little bit of one of the threads I revealed in that Intermission all those chapters ago is shown again here. See if you can spot it. Hopefully, you all will read this, since it was honestly one of my favorite chapters to write. It wasn't as fun as "When We Ride, We Ride", but it comes pretty close. I do make things all better by the end, just like I promised.

Additionally, Seymour Proftz/Samuel Pounds is my own character, and he'll probably only appear in this chapter. His "attorney name" was my mom's idea, because she's a dork, God love her.

Also, as a bit of a note on the trial scene: I am perfectly aware that this is not how things like this would go in a real criminal trial in the United States. I based it off of that, yes, but I also merged it with elements from civil trials, namely the use of the term "plaintiff", and the general set up of the courtroom. I am also perfectly aware that I did not give Jenifyr a lawyer. There is a perfectly good reason for this: I don't like Jenifyr. Also, in this world, lawyers are optional, regardless of the case matter. Just...keep in mind that, although I based it off of American criminal court proceedings, it isn't exactly the same, and I wrote it that way on purpose.

Hopefully, you'll enjoy this chapter (since it was a monster that was longer than any chapter I've yet written for this thing), and I brought a few of my readers back to the story. I told you I'd make it all better.

The title is part of a lyric from "Goodbye" by Kristinia DeBarge.

**Warning:** There is swearing in this chapter.

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**More Specific Disclaimer:** Jennifer Stone is the name of an actress from the Disney Channel Original TV show "Wizards of Waverly Place". I did not watch the show when I began writing this story, and only found out her name today. I did not model Jenifyr Stone after Jennifer Stone or her character on the TV show Harper in any way.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 15 - Take This Final Piece of Advice**

"That horrible bitch," Videl muttered to herself as she and Gohan's parents walked into the offices of Seymour Proftz, Attorney at Law.

"I want to scold you for your language, but at the moment, I'm far too busy agreeing with you," ChiChi said, her voice as close to a growl as Videl had ever heard it. "Why would she do this? Gohan would never do anything like that."

"I know that, Mrs. Sondë - "

"Videl, we're far too past that for you to call me that. It's ChiChi."

"All right, ChiChi. Anyway, I know that Gohan wouldn't rape a girl, and so does Jenifyr. She's just a bitch who got butthurt because Gohan dumped her after they got into a fight."

"That's why they broke up?" Goku asked, and Videl sighed before pulling them aside.

"Gohan told me what happened," she said in a low voice. "You can't tell him that I told you this, though, okay?" Once they'd both nodded, Videl continued. "He and Jenifyr had been talking, and Jenifyr was complaining about how he didn't pay her that much attention."

"What?" ChiChi said furiously. "Since they started going out, he barely spent any time with anyone else!"

"Believe me, ChiChi, I know," Videl said. 'Especially since Jenifyr tried to take Gohan from me, specifically. Since I became Gohan's friend, she didn't like me, either.' "Anyway, she made a remark about getting more of a response out of James Pickett than Gohan. So Gohan told her to go talk to James. If that's all that they were doing."

"You mean Gohan thought that Jenifyr was cheating on him?" Goku asked, and Videl nodded.

"I think it's more that he knew, and Jenifyr just got offended because she knew that he knew. But, Jenifyr got so worked up that she slapped Gohan in the face. He told her to leave, and she tried, unsuccessfully, to apologize. She…" Videl trailed off. She didn't really want to say the next part, since she was afraid of telling ChiChi that Jenifyr had tried to put her in a bad light.

"She what?" ChiChi said, and Videl decided reluctantly that honesty would serve to be the best policy.

"She…well, she told him that…that she wasn't…wasn't you, ChiChi," she said quietly, and watched as ChiChi got very still.

"Wasn't me?" ChiChi asked faintly, and Videl got a very bad feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"Gohan told her that she wasn't," Videl said quickly. "He said that she was even worse, because he'd never thought that she would be accusing, or controlling, or willing to hit him. He also said that you weren't like that, and if she paid half as much attention to him as she wanted him to pay to her, she'd know that. He escorted her to the door right then and there."

ChiChi felt badly shaken. Since she'd realized her mistakes that Thanksgiving years ago, she'd made every attempt to get to know her son. She had found that he was a wonderful boy, and that he was a personification of Goku's and her own best qualities. She also found that her husband and son were a lot easier to get along with than she'd been making it. She'd started on her new path and never looked back. Until this moment, that is.

'Was I really like that?' she wondered. 'Sure, I was insulting, yes, and I was degrading. But…I had no idea I'd ever been that horrible. Where did all of those memories go? Did I just…repress them, or something? What kind of person would cause their family to feel like that?'

"ChiChi." Videl was snapping her fingers in ChiChi's face, and she shook her head slightly, bringing herself out of her thoughts. "ChiChi, you have to understand. Jenifyr's manipulative. She was trying to get Gohan back under her control. It backfired, and this is her revenge. Gohan thinks the world of you, ChiChi. Ever since Thanksgiving five years ago. You should see him when he talks about you now."

"My baby…" ChiChi said quietly, before her head snapped up, her eyes determined. "We're going to get my baby out of this," she said. "And we're going to make Jenifyr Stone a very miserable girl."

Videl smirked and nodded, and it was then that Seymour found them. "Well, hello, what can I do for you?" he asked politely.

"Are you Seymour?" Goku asked, and Seymour nodded.

"Seymour Proftz, attorney at law, at your service," he said with a bow. "Do you have some need of my services?"

"Yes, but I have a question first," Videl asked. "Is your name really Seymour Proftz?"

Seymour laughed. "No, but I figured it was catchy and a subtle jab at other attorneys' practices. I actually happen to have the best rates in the city. So what can I do for you?"

"My son was arrested on rape charges last night," ChiChi said bluntly. "And we want to hire you to prove that the girl who accused him is a childish liar."

Seymour growled and said, "I think I can do that. Right this way." He ushered the three of them into his office, shut the door, then sat down behind his desk. "All right, I need names, relations, alibis, and motives," he said in a businesslike manner as he flicked the power switch on his computer.

"Do you want to handle it, Videl?" Goku asked, and Videl nodded, sending him a confused look. "You're closer in age, and you'll probably want to be with Gohan when this comes to trial, right?" Videl nodded and looked to Seymour, who was waiting patiently.

"Videl Filcure," she said, and Seymour immediately began typing away. "I'm Gohan Sondë's girlfriend. Gohan Sondë is the name of the accused, and Jenifyr Stone is the name of the accuser. These two people with me are Goku and ChiChi Sondë, Gohan's parents. The accusation came yesterday, although we all know it's wrong. Yesterday was Gohan's birthday, and we spent all day at a party at his house. We didn't see Jenifyr all day."

"So why would Jenifyr Stone accuse Gohan?" Seymour asked when he had finished typing.

"Because Gohan split up with her a few months ago after they'd had a disagreement. Also, Gohan had suspicions of infidelity on Jenifyr's part with James Pickett, who is now Jenifyr Stone's boyfriend. He'll probably be on her side."

"So I would assume," Seymour said, letting his fingers rest after he'd finished typing again. "Now, obviously, three witnesses on Gohan's part is too much to be coincidence. Furthermore, if we can get definitive proof that Jenifyr Stone was not raped, then her accusation would fall flat and she would suffer the consequences."

"What consequences would those be?" Videl asked, and Seymour tapped his finger on his bottom lip, thinking.

After a moment, he said, "The standard penalty for a false accusation of rape is community service. However, if it comes to light that she lied about everything, and she happens to give testimony, then she could be charged with perjury, which is a much more serious offense. I will do my best to make sure that that is what happens."

"Really? You will? But - "

"Miss Filcure, I have a serious issue with girls who feel like they can get petty revenge against their ex-boyfriends by accusing him of statutory rape. That is a felony charge, Miss Filcure, one that could get Gohan thrown in prison."

"But he's only 17."

"Rape is rape," Seymour said in a blunt tone. "No matter the age, the consequences of being found guilty of such a charge are absolute. I'm sure Jenifyr Stone knows this, and yet she chose to make a false accusation anyway. Just to be sure that we can win this, however, we may need more witnesses."

"There were eight other people at Gohan's party yesterday," Videl said. "Would they suffice?"

"Names, please."

"Missy Jasso, Geoffrey Jasso, Matthew Jasso-Helod, Jedidiah Morgane, Barbara Morgane, Emily Morgane, Kathryn Stevenson, Evan Williams," Videl said, counting them off on her fingers. "All of them were at the party yesterday, and although Goku, ChiChi, my mother Felicia Filcure, and I are the only ones who know about this yet, they would be more than willing to testify on Gohan's behalf."

"Good, good. Jenifyr Stone didn't think this through very well, and we will show her what happens to children who bite off more than they can chew," Seymour said, nodding satisfactorily. "Where is Gohan Sondë at this time?"

"The police station," Goku cut in. "They're holding him there until the proceedings and the verdict."

"I will meet with him, and we will get this settled," Seymour said, standing up and holding out a hand. Videl, Goku, and ChiChi all stood as well, and shook his hand before he escorted them to the front door. "Thank you for choosing me to defend your son," Seymour said. "I will make sure that Jenifyr Stone gets what she deserves."

* * *

'That girl has a lot of nerve,' Seymour thought as he watched Gohan's girlfriend and parents leave. 'She's hurt and angry and probably jealous, and this is the path she chooses. Stupid girl.' Ever since his brother had been sentenced to life in prison on false charges of rape, Seymour had made the decision to go into law to make sure that that sort of injustice never happened to anyone else. His brother had suffered enough, and one person falsely incarcerated is one person too many.

He took off his tie and loosened his shirt, ruffling his hair out of its smooth hairdo. He turned his nameplate on his desk down, and shucked his jacket and button-down shirt, leaving him in a simple white t-shirt and slacks. He printed out what Videl had told him and put it in his briefcase before leaving to go to the police station.

When he arrived, the policeman looked up and blinked a couple of times before asking, "Is there a problem?"

"You bet your ass there's a problem," Seymour, now simply Samuel, replied. "I'm an attorney here to meet the boy I'm defending."

"Name?"

"Sam Pounds," Sam replied, and the policeman shook his head.

"The kid, sir."

"Gohan. Gohan Sondë."

"The kid accused of rape?" Sam nodded, and the policeman stood, his whole demeanor changed. "It's beyond me how anyone could do something like that," the policeman said as he led Sam toward Gohan's cell.

"You're telling me."

"What kind of person could take advantage of someone like that, and then** lie** about it?"

"I honestly don't know. It amazes me how she's managed to get away with it."

"She? I thought Gohan Sondë was male," the policeman said as they stopped walking, and Sam realized that they'd been thinking of two different people.

"I am male," a voice came from the cell, and Sam assumed that was Gohan. The owner of the voice came into the light, and Sam looked at him for a minute. He looked a lot like his father, although Sam was fairly sure that Gohan was a slight bit taller than his father. That or the exact same height. "Who are you?" Gohan asked, and Sam started slightly.

"You can call me Sam," he replied, holding out a hand. When Gohan didn't take it, Sam turned to the policeman and said, "Is there a way I can get in here to talk to Gohan?"

"Normally we'd just take the two of you to an interrogation room."

"Fine, then can we do that?" Sam was tapping his foot, he could tell. He tried to make himself stop, but he was feeling too impatient. The policeman nodded and unlocked the cell and led Gohan and Sam to a door next to a one-way mirror.

"Nice one-way mirror," Gohan commented, and Sam smirked. He could already tell that he was going to like this boy, even as the policeman growled and ushered them both inside. "Now then, Sam, what do you want?" Gohan asked as they sat down on opposite sides of the table.

"Your parents and girlfriend hired me to defend you," Sam said. "The name I use as an attorney is Seymour Proftz. But right now, I'm simply Sam Pounds."

"How many people know that?"

Sam raised an eyebrow as he replied, "Everyone who needs to know knows. Now then, like I said, I'm Sam. In court, though, you'll have to call me Mr. Proftz or Seymour. Understood?"

"Yes, now how am I supposed to defend myself against Jenifyr's charges?" Gohan asked, and Sam smirked again.

"The trial will be next week, since things are fairly inactive. What we'll do is this…"

* * *

A week passed, and the trial came. After Sam had talked to Gohan, he'd called Goku and ChiChi and told them that they were free to come and take Gohan home until the trial. They had done so, and now they and Videl entered the court room.

Gohan looked around and shuddered; the court room looked exactly like the one in the dream he'd had on his birthday. The seats were the same, the podium was the same, there were three circular windows in the wall behind the judge's chair. It was seriously unnerving.

Gohan, Seymour, and Videl all moved to the front of the room and sat on the left-hand side of the divide, until Seymour motioned to Gohan to stand at the mini-podium in front of them that rested on the divider. Gohan went to do so as the double doors opened and Jenifyr Stone, Mariya Stone, and James Pickett walked in.

Gohan took one look at Jenifyr's smug countenance and found that for the first time in a long time, he wanted Jenifyr to get her comeuppance for lying like this. He understood that she hadn't wanted to break up with him, but considering how quickly she'd gotten together with James afterward, he didn't think it had bothered her all that much. So what was her excuse for this?

"Why are you doing this?" Gohan asked her silently, and she ignored him, only allowing a few tears to run down her face as she schooled her features into those of a girl who'd been deeply traumatized. Gohan's upper lip lifted in a silent snarl, which Jenifyr also ignored. He turned his focus to James, who looked pointedly ahead, and then to Mariya, who wasn't staring at him, but at Goku, who was ignoring her. 'That's odd,' he thought, but then his attention turned to the double doors again.

There were a considerable amount of people entering the court room now. First came Matt, then Geoffrey and Missy. Behind them came Emily, Barbara, and Jedidiah, and then behind them came Kathryn and Evan. All in all, there were 13 people on Gohan's side, including his parents, Videl, and Seymour, while there were only two on Jenifyr's side. That made Gohan feel a little better, but he still wanted to shake Jenifyr roughly for being so stupid as to get him into this situation in the first place.

A man in a brown dress shirt and dark brown pants with black shoes stepped into the room and said, "All rise, the honorable Judge Adam Greene presiding." A tall, black-haired man walked with a stately step into the courtroom, seating himself behind the podium and banging the gavel twice, motioning for everyone to be seated.

"The case today is that of one Jenifyr Stone, who accuses Gohan Sondë of rape on the night of July 31st, 2007. Mr. Sondë, how do you plead?"

Seymour stood and said, "My client pleads not guilty to the charges, Your Honor."

"Your name is?" Judge Adam asked.

"Seymour Proftz, Your Honor," Seymour replied. "I was hired by Gohan's parents and girlfriend to defend him today."

Judge Adam studied him for a moment before nodding and saying, "Bailiff, if you would." The bailiff nodded and pulled out a copy of the Book of Kami, telling Jenifyr to place her right hand on it and swear to tell the truth, the entire truth, and nothing bar the truth, in the name of Kami. When she had done, so, Judge Adam said, "Will the plaintiff please make her case?"

"Yes, Your Honor," Jenifyr said, making her way to the mini-podium. She cleared her throat and began, her voice sounding on the edge of a quaver. "On the night of July 31st, I was with my boyfriend, James Pickett. We were working together on a project for the beginning of my fall semester at Orange Star University. Around nine p.m. James said that he had to leave, or his grandparents would become worried."

"Are Mr. Pickett's grandparents here today?" Judge Adam asked, and Jenifyr shook her head. "Very well, continue."

"Thank you, Your Honor. After James had left, I continued to work on my project, because there were a couple more things left to do. Small adjustments to be made, things like that. Around 10:30 p.m., Gohan Sondë came into my room, saying that my mother had let him in."

Videl made to stand up and say something, but Seymour placed a hand on her arm and shook his head slowly. Unwillingly, Videl made herself sink back into her seat as Jenifyr continued to spin her tale. "I asked him what else could he possibly want with me, and he…he told me that he was 'going to make me pay' for dumping him."

"You two had broken up recently?" Judge Adam asked, and Jenifyr nodded. Judge Adam looked to Gohan and said, "Mr. Sondë, is this true?"

"Yes, Your Honor, but - "

"I simply asked if you and Miss Stone had broken up, Mr. Sondë, nothing else needs to be said," Judge Adam cut across him, and Gohan fell silent. "Continue, Miss Stone."

"Yes, Your Honor. I asked him what he meant, but he only grabbed me by my shoulders and made me stand up. He…he forcibly steered me over to my bed, and then h-he…" her voice broke, and she dug in her pockets before drawing out a tissue and blowing her nose in it. "He f-forced me to st-stay on the bed while he ripped my pants off, and then he stripped, and…"

"Please continue your story, Miss Stone. I know it's hard, but I need to ask you to finish the story."

"If I could have just a second to regain myself, Your Honor," Jenifyr said, and Judge Adam nodded, clearly looking sympathetic. After a few minutes, Jenifyr proceeded. "After he stripped himself of his clothing, he laid himself on top of me, and p-penetrated me. I was so scared, and yet he was so gentle…"

"Gentle, Miss Stone?" Judge Adam asked, looking confused now.

"Yes, Your Honor. He said that he was going to be gentle with me, so that it wouldn't look like I had been raped. He was just trying to c-cover his bases." 'He wasn't the only one,' Videl thought, but did not say. "He pulled out of m-me…before he ejaculated…saying that that way no one would be able to find any trace of him in me." Jenifyr blew her nose again, and then said, "After that…he…he just left, like nothing had happened."

Judge Adam nodded, making a note, before turning to Gohan and saying, "And if the defendant would care to make his claim?"

"Thank you, Your Honor," Gohan said with a nod. "Jenifyr Stone is lying, Your Honor."

"That's what a lot of rape defendants say, Mr. Sondë," Judge Adam replied. "If you were not at Jenifyr Stone's house on the night of the 31st of July, where were you?"

"He was at his own house, Your Honor," Seymour cut in, standing up now. "July 31st was his birthday, and he spent the entire day in the company of his family and friends."

"Who would care to support that claim?" Judge Adam asked, and Videl stood.

"I would, Your Honor."

"Your name for the record, miss?"

"Videl Filcure, Your Honor. I'm Gohan's girlfriend. Your Honor, we spent all of July 31st celebrating Gohan's 17th birthday. He didn't make himself known until around midday, and then he spent all of his time in the company of myself, his parents, my mother, four of our friends, and four of our friends' parents , until close to five p.m."

"What happened at that time?"

"His parents gave him his birthday gift, a Pegasus RZ Convertible," Videl replied. "He drove myself, Matthew Jasso-Helod, Emily Morgane, Kathryn Stevenson, and Evan Williams around in the car for about two hours, and then we went back to his house. Everyone but myself and my mother left between nine and ten p.m., and it stayed that way until Gohan was arrested at 11:50 p.m."

"Who is present today to substantiate your story, Miss Filcure?" Judge Adam asked, and everyone on Gohan's side of the courtroom stood. "State all of your names for the record, please."

"Matthew Jasso-Helod, Gohan Sondë's best friend since seventh grade."

"Missy Jasso, Matthew's mother."

"Geoffrey Jasso, Matthew's father."

"Emily Morgane."

"Barbara Morgane, Emily's stepmother."

"Jedidiah Morgane, Emily's father."

"Kathryn Stevenson, Gohan Sondë's friend since freshman year of high school."

"Evan Williams, Gohan Sondë's friend since freshman year of high school."

"Felicia Filcure, Videl Filcure's mother."

"Goku Sondë, Gohan Sondë's father."

"ChiChi Sondë, Gohan Sondë's mother."

Judge Adam nodded, and then said, "If the attorney for the defendant would like to question the plaintiff." Seymour nodded his thanks, then moved to pace back and forth in front of Jenifyr.

"Miss Stone, how long did you date Gohan Sondë?"

"I don't know," Jenifyr replied. "Since freshman year."

"So, three years," Seymour said, and Jenifyr nodded. "In all of that time, did Gohan ever…make any sort of unwanted advances toward you? Of a sexual variety or otherwise?"

"No, sir," Jenifyr said, dabbing at her eyes. "That's why it was so shocking."

"I'm sure, Miss Stone, I'm sure," Seymour replied, the picture of sympathy. "Now, you said that Mr. Sondë gripped you by the shoulders?"

"Yes, sir, hard enough to leave bruises."

"Well, I would assume that those have faded by now." In response, Jenifyr slipped one of her sleeves down to show the lightest shadow of a bruise on her shoulder. "Ah, I see. A shadow remains. Now, Miss Stone, you also said that you were raped sometime around 10:30 p.m., correct?" At Jenifyr's nod, Seymour said, "And…I beg your pardon for asking, but…how long do you suppose Mr. Sondë took?"

"Maybe a half hour. When I picked up my phone five minutes after my boyfriend arrived to make the emergency call, the clock said 11:15 p.m." Seymour nodded and said, "What happened when you made the emergency call?"

"They offered to submit me to a rape kit."

"Did you do so?"

"No," Jenifyr said, her voice ugly. "I had just been raped, sir. I didn't exactly want anyone else near that particular area of my body at that point."

"Did you allow them to use a rape kit in the week leading up to today?"

"No, sir. I was trying to forget what had happened."

"A fine idea, Miss Stone, although placing an emergency call and having Mr. Sondë arrested and being informed of the trial in seven days can't have made your goal easy."

"Somehow, I managed."

"I'm sure. What else happened during the call?"

"They said that they would come buy to obtain a DNA sample from the sheets on my bed."

"Did they?"

"No, sir. I had already placed the sheets in the washing machine. Again, I was trying to forget what had happened."

"So, you're telling me, Miss Stone, that Mr. Sondë raped you at 10:30, ended at 11:00, your boyfriend arrived at 11:10, you placed the emergency call at 11:15, and Mr. Sondë was arrested at 11:50?"

"That's correct, sir."

"So there was a window of about ten minutes in which you called your boyfriend, put the sheets in the washing machine, and managed to remove all traces of Mr. Sondë from your room?"

"I work quickly, sir."

"I would imagine anyone would have the mental and physical resources to do so, after being raped," Seymour said kindly, and Gohan felt the change in the air.

"Are you telling me that I am lying, sir?"

"I am making no such claim, Miss Stone. I am simply saying that you, in ten minutes, managed to get past the psychological trauma usually associated with rape in order to remove all traces of Mr. Sondë from your room, and be able to place a call in which you refused to submit to a rape kit."

"I had just been raped, Mr. Proftz!"

"I'm sure, Miss Stone," Seymour replied, his own voice sounding ugly now. "And in your rush to get rid of all traces of what had happened and convince people that you had just been raped, you also failed to secure any evidence to support your claims. Your mother can't have heard you, and you said yourself that your boyfriend didn't arrive until a full ten minutes after you had been 'raped'. So your boyfriend cannot be used as a witness. You have no matching DNA sample to link Gohan to your room, and you have no proof that you were raped in the first place, save for your word."

"Why…why don't you believe me?" Jenifyr asked, sounding deeply hurt.

"Because, Miss Stone, not only do you have no supporting evidence for your claim, Mr. Sondë has 12 eyewitnesses who claim to have spent the entire day with him. **Twelve**, Miss Stone. Are you telling me that twelve people are all lying in an attempt to prove that Gohan Sondë did not rape you?"

"Yes, they're all lying!" Jenifyr said. "How could they do anything else? Gohan practically has them wrapped around his finger - "

"The same way you tried to wrap Mr. Sondë around yours?" Seymour cut across her, and Jenifyr was shocked into silence.

"Objection to this, Your Honor," Mariya said, standing up. "He's placing words into my daughter's mouth."

"Objection upheld," Judge Adam said, and Seymour nodded, deciding to try a different track.

"Miss Stone, if you would, please tell us the circumstances of your break-up with Mr. Sondë."

"I was trying to get his attention, and he was refusing to listen to me," Jenifyr said. "He then accused me of cheating, and told me that I was manipulative and abusive, and forced me to leave."

"How did he do so?"

"He shoved me with his hands on my shoulders."

"Did he press down hard on your shoulders, Miss Stone?"

"Yes, sir."

"Hard enough to leave bruises?"

Jenifyr stopped, and Seymour gave her a sickly smile. "See, Miss Stone, I had talked with Mr. Sondë before now, and he told me the circumstances of your separation, in quite a different light. He told me that you became offended at his insinuation based on your claim that you could get a better response from your current boyfriend than from your ex. He then told me that you slapped him, and he repeatedly asked you to leave."

"He's lying."

"He also told me that, after you ignored him repeatedly, you attempted to get back in his good graces by attempting to belittle his mother. When that didn't work, and you still refused to leave, **then** he escorted you from his home."

"By practically compressing my shoulders!" Jenifyr yelled, and Seymour blinked, appearing completely unimpressed.

"Did he leave bruises that time, Miss Stone?"

"Why does it matter?"

"Because if he did, then how would we know whether those shadows came from the break-up, or from the attempted rape? It is common knowledge, Miss Stone, that bruises generally take between weeks and months to fade completely, depending on the force behind what made them."

"I bruise easily!"

"I'm sure you do, Miss Stone. If you do, shouldn't those bruises on your shoulder be darker than that, since you're so sensitive?" Jenifyr couldn't reply, and Seymour nodded knowingly. "What I believe, Miss Stone, is that you, in a fit of revenge, attempted to charge Gohan Sondë, an innocent teenager, of statutory rape. Yet you made this accusation while attempting to cover all your bases in a lie. In doing so, you gave yourself no way to back up your lie. So here you stand. Do you still hold that Mr. Sondë raped you?"

Jenifyr didn't speak, obviously under the impression that whatever she said would be twisted around against her somehow. She did, however, say, "I'm done talking to you."

Seymour nodded and smiled again, and turned to Judge Adam, who had been watching this exchange silently, and said, "Your Honor, what I believe this 'rape case' is, is nothing more than a young girl's childish attempt to get back at someone who refused to let her manipulate him any more."

"He still left bruises on me!" Jenifyr screeched, and Seymour turned to look at her.

"Whether or not that was the case, Miss Stone, you refused to comply with his polite wishes to leave his home. In that case, I fail to see how Mr. Sondë was at fault in using force to make you leave. Furthermore, your bruises have nothing to do with the rape charge, other than a way to make it seem like you'd been battered. Which would also make no sense, given that you claimed that Mr. Sondë was gentle with you when he 'raped' you. Would he not remain gentle all the way through, so as to leave no physical evidence behind, including bruises?"

Jenifyr wasn't talking again, and Judge Adam studied her silently before saying, "The court finds Gohan Sondë not guilty of raping Jenifyr Stone on the night of July 31st, 2007. The court finds Jenifyr Stone guilty of causing Mr. Sondë to be falsely imprisoned, in addition to charges of lying under oath. The penalty for the plaintiff is 50 hours of community service, and six months under house arrest." Judge Adam banged the gavel twice, and Gohan smirked as he shook Seymour's hand.

"It was a pleasure working with you, Mr. Proftz," Gohan said, and Seymour nodded in reply before grabbing his briefcase and leaving. As Videl came up and looped her arm with his, Gohan turned to look at Jenifyr, who was staring at him with nothing but hate in her eyes.

"Take my advice, Jenifyr," Gohan said. "And leave me alone." With that, he, Videl, and everyone else save Mariya, Jenifyr, and James left the courtroom.

After everyone had left, Jenifyr turned to Mariya and said, "Mom, do you see what he did?"

"Yes, honey, I did. He's no better than his father." She was offering comfort to her idiotic daughter because it's what Jenifyr was searching for, but Mariya was still thinking of Goku. 'Soon, Goku. Very soon.'

-TBC-

**A/N II:** Say it with me: "Ha ha ha, Jenifyr, that's what you get! Nyah!" Also, review, please. :D I want to know what you think of how I ended this little charade of Jenifyr's.

Also, now I can read the reviews for the last chapter. I'm scared, I admit it. But hey. We'll see what happens.

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	19. Interlude: You Came Along and Changed My

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**Warning:** This interlude contains references to **physical**, **emotional**, and **mental abuse**. If you're particularly sensitive to these issues, I would beg that you not read this interlude if you think it would make you uncomfortable.

**His Saving Grace**

**Interlude: You Came Along And Changed My Mind**

Avery Ratcliffe and Michelle Belafonte were changed people.

They'd left Gohan Sondë alone, because, somewhere, they'd both grown a conscience. The conscience they'd both grown had shown them just how horribly they'd treated Gohan, for no reason other than that they'd seen themselves as more privileged, and thus entitled to making fun and tormenting Gohan.

Another reason they'd left Gohan Sondë alone was because they'd suddenly, since they'd found their Aunt Isobel lying on Avery's couch that day back in seventh grade, been thrust into the dance that all their relatives were constantly playing a part in.

For one matter, there were the three Belafonte siblings, including Isobel, that linked the Ratcliffes and the Belafontes together. Michael Belafonte, since Michelle's mother had died in childbirth, had almost jealously guarded and protected his daughter. Because he'd made his daughter the center of his life, he had no time for dating, not that his sister Beatrice never tried.

Michael and Beatrice also tried to protect their youngest sister Isobel, since Isobel had a penchant for men named Anthony who just happened to be dangerous in some way. It was just her luck that she'd been involved with one Anthony, then left him for another. The first Anthony, who Avery had overheard his father calling "Antonio", was utterly desperate as a result of Isobel's desertion, and was constantly seen wandering around the town, muttering about how he wanted Isobel back, because he missed her so much.

The second Anthony, the one that had been yelling the day Avery had found Aunt Isobel, was named Anthony Pemter. The first was Antonio Esperar. Neither were healthy men, and both had two things in common: unhealthy mindsets, and Isobel.

Michelle had told her father once about how she and Avery had seen that Antonio had taken to talking to a blonde woman, whom he honestly believed could help him get Isobel back. She closed her eyes as she remembered the day that Avery Sr., Michael, Beatrice, and Isobel had taken her and her cousin Avery into Avery's parents' room about a week after they'd found Isobel in order to…chat.

**-Flashback-**

"Mom, Dad, Aunt Beatrice, Aunt Isobel, what's going on?" Avery asked, looking to the four adults in a confused manner. "Why is Aunt Isobel here? I thought she was with…"

"See, that's the problem," Beatrice said. "Your Aunt Isobel has…complications in her relationships right now."

"Oh, please, Aunt Beatrice, you don't have to coddle us," Michelle said, before turning to her father. "Daddy, why can't you just tell us what's going on?"

Michael sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose, before looking to Beatrice, Avery Sr., and Isobel, all three of whom nodded. Turning to Michelle and Avery Jr., he said, "All right, kids, it's like this. Back when the four of us were teenagers, Aunt Isobel met someone named Antonio Espero. They seemed happy for a long time, but…" At this, he trailed off and looked toward Isobel, who nodded as she took over.

"Antonio was…needy," she said. "Too needy. He always wanted to do things together, always wanted to be together, always wanted and wanted and **wanted**. He wanted so much…so much that I knew I couldn't give him, because I'm not his type. I realized that about two years after we started dating, and we split. I thought that he was okay with it. He'd seemed to understand. That is, until I found out that he'd been trailing me since we split, spying on me." Here, she shivered, and Michelle's heart went out to her.

"I felt scared. So I began dating again, looking for a man who could protect me."

"She thought she found him in Anthony Pemter," Beatrice cut in with a scoff.

"Can you blame me, Beatrice?" Isobel asked in a tone of exasperation. "He was big, he was strong, and when he encountered Antonio, he quickly showed him what was wrong with stalking me the way he was, out of misguided love or not. Antonio finally left me alone, or so I'd thought, and Anthony and I stayed together."

"Until that became a problem, as well," Avery Sr. cut in. "Anthony, in addition to being ferociously protective, was extremely physical. This physicality often took the form of…well, abuse."

"He abused Aunt Isobel?" Avery asked. He felt like he had a nasty taste in his mouth that someone could take advantage of someone else like that. "How could he do that?"

"He has…problems controlling his anger," Isobel replied. "I just so happened to be his punching bag. Finally, just yesterday, it became too much."

"Why can't I see any bruises or anything?" Michelle asked, feeling revolted herself. She felt absolutely horrible for her Aunt Isobel, a sweet person who'd never done anything wrong, and yet had someone beating on him. Her mind began tracing parallels to the way she, her cousin, Jenifyr, and James acted toward Gohan, but cut that thought off.

Isobel sighed and lifted her shirt up. Avery and Michelle gasped in unison. All over her stomach and ribcage were deep purple bruises and welts. There were a few cuts, as well; Anthony wore his class ring at all times. Isobel rolled up her sleeves, and they saw angry red hand marks all the way up her arms from her wrists to halfway between her elbow and her shoulder.

"I'll kill him," Avery said, and made to move. Before he could, however, Isobel held up a hand.

"No, Avery, don't. I've filed a restraining order against him. It isn't even finalized yet, since it's only been about a week in the making. Just…leave him be. Please. He has no problems beating up people who are weaker or smaller than him. He thought I was like that…that I wasn't strong enough to leave him. And you see how wrong he was."

Avery's mind flashed to Gohan, but he ignored it. Gohan wasn't important. However, the thought about Gohan didn't go away. It just…put itself in a box. Avery could ignore the box if he wanted, but that didn't change the fact that it would be there, waiting for him to notice it and what it held concerning Gohan. He did decide to leave Gohan alone, however, unaware that his cousin had decided to do the same.

"So…what do we do?" Michelle asked.

"Right now, we focus on keeping Isobel away from Anthony," Avery Sr. replied. "He's too temperamental, and you've seen now how badly he hurts Isobel."

"We're going to help," Michelle said in a determined voice, and Avery Jr. nodded fiercely.

"He isn't getting at Aunt Isobel. Not again."

"I admire your efforts to help, I really do," Isobel said. "But I'm all but begging you: leave him alone. He isn't worth the effort."

"We can leave him alone and keep you safe," Avery Jr. said with a shrug, and Michelle nodded in agreement.

"If we can keep him away, he won't think anything of the fact that we can't seem to find you. And we know that Daddy, Aunt Beatrice, and Uncle Avery are going to do everything they can to help. Why can't we?" Michelle demanded.

Michael, Isobel, Avery Sr., and Beatrice all looked at each other, seeming to come to some sort of silent consensus. Finally, Isobel said, "If you're willing to help, then you can."

Avery Jr. grinned darkly, at the same time Michelle asked, "But, Aunt Isobel, if he's abused you so badly, why don't you press charges?"

"Who says we haven't?" Beatrice replied, her grin mirroring her son's. "We're working on bringing him to court as we speak."

**-End Flashback-**

Anthony Pemter had been charged and found guilty of over twenty counts of domestic violence, in addition to aggravated assault and battery. He was sentenced to ten years in prison. The day of his sentencing, on June 15th, 2009, marked the hopeful end of Isobel's troubles, and Avery's 18th birthday. Michelle's was earlier in the year, on March 29th.

That summer was also the summer that they'd heard that Antonio was back to his trailing ways. Immediately, they'd begun tracking him in turn, trying to figure out what was going on. Avery and Michelle were the ones who'd found out about the blonde woman, and had told their respective parents immediately.

They'd also found out about Jenifyr and James dating Gohan and Videl respectively, the breakups, and the trial. Avery had remarked to Michelle that they must really have fallen apart from their friends to have such huge developments be made that they knew nothing about. Michelle had to agree; after they'd thrown themselves into protecting their Aunt Isobel, Jenifyr and James had quickly seen that they weren't going to be partners-in-torment any more. It hadn't been that big of an argument, but Avery and Michelle had both long since come to the realization that the way they'd treated Gohan as children was atrocious.

Michelle had given up any hope of retribution. Avery had not. He had been wanting to, ever since he'd realized how cruel he'd been, find a way to make it up to Gohan. He'd been watching Gohan as closely as he'd been watching Antonio with Michelle. Michelle was more daring than he was when it came to tracking Antonio, however; she'd actually followed him one day and found him talking to the blonde woman. Michelle never paid that much attention to the blonde woman, but when she found a regular schedule that the blonde woman met Antonio, she brought Avery along, and it was he who'd figured out who the blonde woman was.

"Michelle, that's Mrs. Stone. That's Jenifyr's mom!" Michelle was shocked. 'What could Mrs. Stone want with Antonio?'

Avery had, meanwhile, gotten closer, and he could hear their conversation.

"Is it time yet?"

"Almost. I promise."

"Are you sure this will get me Isobel?"

"I am positive. Do you remember what you have to do?"

"Goku will be leaving the supermarket tomorrow. I am to drive fast, and pretend that the brakes don't work."

"Good."

Avery grinned as he and Michelle made their way back to Michelle's house. 'Here's my chance to apologize to Gohan. It's too good an opportunity to pass up.'

"Avery?" Michelle waved her hand in front of his face to get his attention. "Avery, what is it you're planning?"

"Nothing, Michelle. I just found a way to apologize to Gohan. I only hope it's enough."

"Is it really that important?"

"Michelle, you've seen how damaging abuse can be. What you and I did to Gohan with James and Jenifyr is no better and could've ended up being every bit as damaging. I needed to find some way to make it up to him. I'm surprised you aren't as concerned."

"Because, in all likelihood, he won't forgive us," Michelle replied. "However, I will warn Gohan, his father, and his mother."

"Thanks, Michelle."

"We're family," she said with a small smile. "It's what we do."

-TBC-

**A/N:** I've decided not to put Author's Notes at the tops of chapters any more. Makes it easier. So it's just disclaimers and warnings at the top of the chapter from now on.

This interlude is a direct lead-in to the next chapter, and marks the beginning of the end of His Saving Grace. It really does. I've been saying that a lot, but this time I really mean it. After this interlude are two more chapters. That's all. It's kind of saddening, but I'm sure we'll all survive somehow. Anyway, in this interlude, as you can see, we revisit Avery and Michelle and find out why they've been leaving Gohan alone. You don't think I honestly just forgot about them, do you? :P

The next chapter could be considered the climax in many ways. It's a turning point in the story (albeit a turning point extremely close to the end of the story), it's full of revelations that have been hinted at all through the story, and, of course, it'll be full of angst, drama, and Gohan/Videl goodness. :D I plan to write the last two chapters today, and am going to begin writing them as soon as I post this.

A couple of notes on the two Anthonys I introduced here:

Anthony Pemter's last name is an anagram of "temper".  
Antonio Esperar's last name is the Spanish verb for "to hope".

The title is part of a lyric from "Nobody's Supposed to Be Here" by Deborah Cox.

Review, please. :D

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	20. Your Mind is in Disturbia

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental.

**Warning:** There is swearing in this chapter, in addition to passing references to sexual acts and abuse. Furthermore, this chapter directly talks about the devastating effects on someone heartbreak, obsession, and/or anger can have. If profanity, sex, abuse, or insanity are uncomfortable subjets, I would beg that you read this as your own risk. I can only warn you so much.

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 16 - Your Mind is in Disturbia**

Gohan woke up with a start. He'd dreamed about the trial again, even though it had happened well over a month ago. Videl had made it a point to come see him every day, and they spent most of each day together; that went a long way toward dispelling the nightmares.

He shivered as his mind, unbidden, went over the nightmare yet again. It progressed exactly as it had in reality, but at the last minute, a twist would come. Jenifyr would say that she had indeed been submitted to a rape kit. She would hand the judge the results and the results would say that the DNA found was Gohan's. He would scream as he was dragged away. Then he would wake up and relive the whole thing awake.

This one had been worse, though. Videl hadn't been there, promising to find a way to get him out. He knew that was probably a subconscious thing, since Videl had been on a trip with her mother. She would return tomorrow, and he was counting the hours, minutes, and seconds until she did and he could have her in his arms again. He missed her so terribly. Also, he wanted to show her something he'd been doing in his mind for a while. He was taking down the castle; rather, it was collapsing, and he was making no move to stop it, since he had a foundation even stronger than his determination under it. That foundation was what he wanted to show Videl. He grinned as he got up, thinking of her reaction.

He pulled on a t-shirt and jeans, before slipping his feet into a pair of sneakers. He was going out for a walk.

"Gohan, are you going somewhere?" ChiChi asked as she spotted him moving toward the front door. "If you see your father, could you tell him to hurry and get home? There's something that I need to tell him."

"Sure, Mom," Gohan said, then paused. 'Something important?' "Wait, if you tell me what it is, I can tell him for you. He's at the supermarket, right?" ChiChi nodded.

"All right, Gohan. If you could, tell him that Michelle Belafonte came by earlier this morning, just after he'd left."

Gohan's jaw dropped. "Michelle Belafonte?"

"Yes, Michelle Belafonte," ChiChi replied, sounding mildly impatient. "She came by, saying that someone had something bad planned for your father today." It was then that Gohan noticed that ChiChi's hands were shaking, and she'd been biting her lip so much it was bleeding.

He moved toward his mother and hugged her tight, and whispered, "It'll be all right, Mom, I promise. I'll go find Dad right now and find a way to keep him safe."

"I'm sorry, Gohan," ChiChi said as she wiped her eyes. "I'm just so worried for him. Who'd want to hurt Goku, of all people? He's never done anyone or anything wrong."

"I don't know, Mom," Gohan replied, while thinking, 'I know that Michelle knows something about it. Hopefully, I can just find Dad and Mom's worrying will be in vain.' He kissed ChiChi's cheek and said, "I'm going to find Dad right now."

"All right, Gohan. Stay safe yourself, please," ChiChi said, already starting to rebuild her composure, to appear calm and collected.

Gohan wasted no time leaving the house and heading for the supermarket. It was three blocks from where he lived. He walked quickly.

* * *

His hands tightened on the steering wheel as he took his foot off the brake. Goku had left the supermarket, and was preparing to cross the crosswalk. His foot slammed on the gas pedal, and the car shot forward from its parking space.

He'd been preparing with the mystery lady for this for years. Ever since she'd changed her mind about going for the boy, she'd focused on Goku and Goku alone. He still didn't know why she wanted him hurt so badly, but he didn't care. He had to get Isobel back.

Antonio Esperar was by no means a stupid man. He was known for being extremely intelligent and quick-thinking, even in high school. Of course, it was in high school that he met Isobel. It was like all the pieces of his universe had fallen into place, with Isobel at the nexus. He had to get her back.

He realized, vaguely, on some level of his mind, that he had probably gone insane in his obsession with Isobel. But that part of his mind was overpowered by the overwhelming need to **find** Isobel, to **be **with Isobel. "I have to find her," he whispered. "Have to find Isobel."

He didn't know how the mystery lady would help him find Isobel, either. She had said that she would, though, and he knew she could be lying, but what if she wasn't? Then he'd miss out on a chance to find Isobel, and he'd be damned before he let that happen. He had to do this.

"For Isobel," he whispered.

He was so focused on his speed, on his target, on Isobel, that he failed to notice the moving body that was heading for his target.

* * *

"Avery, please tell me what you're planning," Michelle said, seriously worried now. She'd tried to get Avery to tell her what it was he was going to do, but all he would say was that he was going to make it up to Gohan. The way he spoke, it was like he was planning to do something drastic. "If you're planning to do something recklessly drastic, tell me so I can hold you down."

Avery chuckled. "Not likely, Michelle. You couldn't hold me down if you tried. Just…please. I need to do this. This is the sign that I needed. This is how I can make it up to Gohan. And I'll be damned if you stop me. Please don't try."

"Avery, I'm scared for you," Michelle blurted out, unable to keep her concern at reasonable levels. "You sound like you're planning to die or something."

She looked at his face, the set of his jaw, his eyes as he scanned the area in front of the supermarket, and gasped. "You're going to jump in front of the car, aren't you?"

"No, Michelle, don't be stupid," Avery said to her, shocked. "I'm going to push Goku out of the way before the car can hit him, that's all. I don't plan to die."

Michelle let out a huge breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. "Oh, Avery, thank Kami," she said, utterly relieved. "You have no idea how worried I was. I was scared that you'd gotten it into your head that the only way for you to apologize to Gohan would be to die."

"No, Michelle, of course not," Avery replied. Then, he tensed, and before Michelle could react, he was off like a rocket.

"Avery!"

* * *

She'd been planning this for years. Almost half her life she'd been planning this, and now her plan was going to come to fruition. Goku was going to get what he deserved for breaking her heart like he had. He belonged with **her**, Kami damn it all. Not that worthless bimbo trash whore ChiChi. ChiChi had stolen Goku from her, and she planned to make them both pay: Goku for leaving her, and ChiChi for making him leave.

She grinned and clapped her hands lightly in excitement as the fool began to speed toward Goku. She should find herself mildly disturbed by the bloodlust singing in her veins, but she couldn't bring herself to care. She was going to get her vengeance, finally, **finally**. Goku would get what was coming to him.

As her heart rate peaked, she found herself remembering the day she'd vowed vengeance on Goku and ChiChi.

**-Flashback-**

"What are you talking about?" she asked Goku, who was standing with his arm around ChiChi's shoulders, ChiChi looking for all the world like she'd just snared a particularly stubborn fish. "You're leaving me?"

"I'm not technically leaving you, Mariya, since we were never together," Goku replied with a shrug. "But since we're as close as we are, I figured I'd let you know that ChiChi and I are together now."

"But…you, you can't just **do **this to me…" Mariya said, starting to cry. "After all we've been through…after all the promises we made each other…you can't just **leave me like that!**"

Goku stepped back, wary. He could sense some sort of heat rising off of Mariya, and he could see a draconic creature stirring in her eyes. "Look, Mariya…you're upset, so we'll leave you alone. I do care for you, despite what you think. I also know that I could never be the kind of guy you deserve."

"Bullshit, Goku," Mariya said suddenly. "You want your worthless whore, **fine**. Have her. I don't care. I can't believe I let you in…only for you to drop me like this. For **her**, of all people." It was no secret that ChiChi Mao had slept with at least half the guys at Orange Star High School. She didn't care who knew it, either, and the guys she'd slept with certainly had no complaints.

"You bitch," ChiChi said, starting to step forward, but Goku grabbed her by the arm.

"No, ChiChi. We should go," Goku said. Looking at Mariya, he said, "Mariya, I'm sorry." That was all he said as he turned and left. ChiChi broke free of his hold, however, and stood there watching Mariya, whose tears were falling from her eyes more and more quickly now.

"That's right," ChiChi said viciously. "I'm with Goku now, so you can get over the stupid crush you have on him. Like he'd ever be with you. He's too good for you. He needs a girl who can treat him right. That girl sure as hell isn't you." With that, she flipped her hair and spun on her heel, walking away with her nose in the air.

'You're going down first, bitch,' Mariya vowed. 'And then after you, I'll get Goku. No one does this to me and gets away with it. This is **not** going to happen like that. Just you wait. I don't care how long it takes. I will get the two of you back.' She could feel her mind slipping as she watched them through her long black hair. Her mind was falling, tumbling into the dark abyss. She didn't know what was at the bottom, but she knew that whatever it was, it would help her get her revenge.

**-End Flashback-**

And then Jenifyr had been born, with black hair just like Goku's. And as soon as Mariya had looked into her blue, blue eyes, she'd known that Jenifyr was special. That knowledge had never left her, and her knowledge had been proven when Jenifyr had accused Gohan of rape. Mariya honestly couldn't care less about Gohan; he was the product of ChiChi and Goku, and as such, this made him an enemy in her eyes, another obstacle keeping her from Goku, who she was meant to be with.

She did feel sort of bad about attacking his father, however. She'd come to kind of like Gohan when he'd been in her martial arts club. He'd been the only person in the entire time she'd run the club to follow the Dragon like her. That merited some affection. But anything else was quickly nullified.

She ripped herself out of her thoughts as she watched the car speed ever closer to Goku. The best part about her plan was that she could in no way be insinuated to have had anything to do with it. The man driving the car was obviously out of his mind, and that meant that he was fair game. Mariya didn't care about him; she only cared about Goku, and Goku getting what he deserved. After he'd experienced justice, then she'd take him back from ChiChi, and he'd finally be where he belonged: with Mariya, his woman, and Jenifyr, his daughter.

The irony of Jenifyr dating Gohan had not been lost on Mariya, and she'd been hard-pressed not to laugh when Jenifyr had told her what she was planning. If it really had happened, then it would be incest, and then Gohan would've been charged with rape **and** incest. The irony was too rich.

She giggled, but abruptly cut off as she narrowed her eyes. "Who is that?" she asked herself. Someone was running toward Goku full-tilt, and he'd probably, at the pace he was going, get to Goku before the car did. She abruptly realized that that was his intent. "No!" she screamed.

* * *

Avery ran.

His mind felt oddly clear.

He knew two things: He was going to save Goku, and that that would be his apology to Gohan.

He noticed out of the corner of his eye that the very person he wanted to apologize to was running toward the supermarket, then noticing his father and the car. He smiled and ran even faster. He was going to do this. This would be his retribution, his absolution.

Avery ran.

His football training was paying off. He'd been the only one on the varsity team able to run at a speed of 18 miles per hour. At that rate, anything he tackled would be hit with enough force to, depending on their size, be knocked backward anywhere from three to twelve yards.

Since Goku Sondë was bigger than he is, and so was Gohan, he wasn't worried about hurting him. Goku would be hurt far more by a speeding car than by a running Avery.

Avery ran.

Goku noticed him, and paused. He and Goku collided, and flew back nearly seven yards, according to the mental yardstick Avery had burned into his mind by his football coach. As they impacted the ground, Avery could hear the car rushing past behind him, the motor running on maximum capacity. It zoomed past, causing Avery's hair to flutter in the wind it created.

He smiled as he stood, offering his hand to Goku, who took it warily.

"Dad!"

* * *

"Dad!" Gohan cried, running toward him and the man who'd tackled him. As he got closer, he realized it was none other than Avery Ratcliffe standing there, and skidded to a stop. His mouth opened slightly as he looked at Avery, who simply looked back.

What Avery did next shocked Gohan. He advanced toward him, then held out a hand. Gohan watched it, then watched him, waiting. "Consider this my apology, Gohan," Avery said, and Gohan's eyes widened. He honestly hadn't thought about Avery or Michelle all that much. He'd thought about Jenifyr, since they'd been dating, and James, since he'd been dating Videl, but Avery and Michelle had just kind of…vanished.

Gohan realized that he was taller than Avery now, by at least a head. If he'd wanted, he could've beaten Avery easily, despite the fact that Avery was the best tackler Orange Star High had ever seen. While Avery had power and speed, Gohan had agility and training in the way of the Dragon. But Avery and Michelle had left him alone entirely. He had no idea that Avery's antics as a child and preteen had affected him this much or stayed with him this long.

His father cleared his throat, and Gohan started before grasping Avery's hand. He honestly didn't care about what Avery had put him through; he'd moved past it, letting time heal it as time does all wounds. But this was important to Avery, and Gohan felt like he'd be doing Avery a grave disservice by ignoring his apology.

"Consider your apology accepted," Gohan said, and Avery grinned as he looked past Gohan. Gohan turned and saw Michelle Belafonte walking toward him. 'This day has been full of surprises,' he thought idly, and had the bad feeling that the surprises weren't over yet.

"Well, Gohan, you're a much better person than I am," Michelle said, making Gohan raise an eyebrow. "Even after all we put you through during elementary and the first year of junior high, you were still able to forgive Avery."

Gohan shrugged and said, "I've healed and moved past it. Had I had any idea this was still something the two of you worried about, I would've put those worries to rest long ago. I'm happy now, with no reason to hold grudges. Well, except against Jenifyr, who accused me of rape, of all things. Anyway…" he trailed off, waiting for Michelle to continue, and so she did.

"Since you forgave Avery, Gohan, I ask your forgiveness as well," Michelle said, her head down. "I know that we made life miserable for you as a kid, and we have no right - "

"Michelle," Gohan interrupted, causing her to look at him. "I said that I'd already moved past it. And if I have, then there's no reason that you and Avery shouldn't have. I'd forgiven you a long time ago." At this, Michelle smiled, and Gohan smiled in return.

"What the hell?!" a voice Gohan hadn't heard in years suddenly made itself known to his ears, and he spun to find none other than Mariya Stone storming toward them.

Warily, Gohan said, "Mrs. Stone, what's wrong?"

"Don't fuck with me right now, Gohan, I'm far too pissed," Mariya hissed in reply, and Gohan's eyes hardened as Goku spoke up.

"You don't have the right to speak to my son like that," he said, and Mariya looked at him.

"You shut up too, Goku," she said in a venomous tone. "You were supposed to pay justice today. But this idiot child got in my way!"

"What are you talking about?" Goku asked, and Gohan said, "Um, it may be better if we take this somewhere so that we aren't all standing in the middle of the supermarket parking lot. Why not take this to my house?"

Mariya hissed but nodded, and she, Gohan, and Goku turned and headed for the Sondë household, Avery and Michelle right behind them. Gohan looked over his shoulder and said, "Is there any reason you're coming, too?"

"Mrs. Stone manipulated someone who we'd been keeping tabs on," Michelle replied. "We want to know what's happening."

Gohan nodded, and soon enough, they were all at his house. He opened the door to find ChiChi chatting with who else but Jenifyr Stone. "What are you doing here?" Gohan asked, his tone ugly. Jenifyr jumped about a mile in the air, and spun around, her eyes dull.

"I came to apologize for what I did," she in a tone as dull as her eyes. "I should never have done that to you, Gohan. I was stupid, and immature, and childish, and now I'm paying the price. I have no right to ask you for forgiveness, but I'm asking anyway, because I've got nothing else to lose, now that I'm on house arrest and no one will talk to me."

"Did you ever think that maybe that was your fault?" Gohan asked in a hard voice, and Jenifyr flinched.

"Yes, Gohan, I know it was my fault," she said quietly. "I was too busy caught up in manipulating people that, once they all fell flat, I had no one but James. And James has only supported me thus far because I've been promising to apologize to you. He wanted no part of what happened, which is why he never said a word during the trial.

"Gohan, I really am sorry. You have to believe that. I've learned my lesson, I really have." She stopped talking and turned back around, leaving Gohan to look at her, unblinking.

"Gohan, hun, I think she's serious," ChiChi said. "She made a childish mistake, and like the adult she's turning into, she's facing the consequences of her childish actions. She came to me to talk to me first, because she was terrified of what would happen if she talked to you."

Gohan blinked at that. He'd never expected Jenifyr to be afraid of him, of all things. Wary, yes. Willing to leave him alone, yes. But afraid? No, not afraid. What cause would she have to be afraid of him?

Yet even as he looked at her, he knew the answer. She was afraid of him because she knew what she had done had made him horribly upset. She'd nearly tarnished his reputation, and she'd gotten him arrested for a crime he didn't commit. He had every right to be furious with her for the rest of his life.

But as he watched her shoulders hunch, he found himself reliving that Thanksgiving when his mother had been much the same way. Like Jenifyr, she'd done something that had driven a wall-sized wedge in between her and Gohan, and like Jenifyr, she was now repenting and probably would for years to come.

Sighing, Gohan said, "Jenifyr, turn around, please." When she'd done so, he said, "I have every right to be mad at you. I have every right to demand that I never have to see your face again. I have the right to ask just about whatever I damn well please of you, and it's entirely your fault." He paused, then said, "However…I think that what happened probably wouldn't have if we hadn't split the way we had. So, for insinuating that you were sleeping with James and for making us split on such awful terms, I'm sorry.

"Tell you what. If you can forgive me, then I can forgive you," he said, and Jenifyr's head snapped up to look at him.

"It can't be just that easy," she said, and Gohan shrugged.

"I don't see why it can't be," he replied. "The way I see it, I can continue to be mad at you, and you can continue to repent after a lost cause, or we can both forgive each other and move on. Being mad at you is far more effort than it's worth."

Jenifyr's lips twitched in something resembling a half-smile, and she said, "I forgive you, Gohan. I shouldn't have been as pushy as I was."

"And I forgive you," Gohan replied with a nod. "Now that that's taken care of, we can figure out why your mother tried to get my father run over."

Jenifyr's eyes widened as she gasped. "She did what?!"

"Ask her yourself, since she's right here," Gohan said, stepping out of the way.

"Mom, what the hell are you thinking?" Jenifyr said. "After all I put Gohan through, and his parents and Videl by extension, how could you try and get him run over?!"

"You don't know what he's done to me!" Mariya hissed in reply.

"Then why don't you tell me!" Jenifyr screamed. "All my life, I've put up with your crazy mutterings about giving Mr. Sondë what he deserves. You even asked me to get my friends in on teasing Gohan, because it would hurt his father, which was 'nothing less than he deserved'. What, Mom, did Mr. Sondë do that was so horrible?"

"He broke my heart!" Mariya yelled. "And my mind! All because of that bitch!" She pointed at ChiChi, whose eyes widened.

"What did I do?" ChiChi asked, and Mariya scoffed.

"Don't lie, ChiChi. You know who I am, and what you did. I'm Mariya! The girl Goku left for you! Left after he took my fucking virginity!" With that, she collapsed on the ground, sobbing.

Gohan's eyes widened, and so did Jenifyr's. They looked at each other, and Gohan found himself noticing the similarities in hair color, nose shape, facial outline…and her eyes…They were the same shade of midnight blue that Gohan had specks of in his eyes.

"We made a baby!" Mariya was sobbing now. "A baby who was born not a month before Gohan! My baby girl! The one who never knew who her father was, and the one who grew up without one because the man who'd allowed me to change my last name to his left me when he found out 'his daughter' wasn't even his!" She was bordering on incoherency now, and save for her sobs, the entire house was silent.

"Dad…is…is that true?" Gohan asked, turning to look at Goku, who had gone positively pale.

"No…no it can't be!" Goku replied, shaking his head. "Mariya and I never slept together! Never!"

"Don't lie, damn it!" Gohan yelled. "Did you or did you not sleep with Jenifyr's mother?!"

"No, I didn't!" Goku yelled back, and Gohan could see the surprise and confusion in his eyes. The emotions were too genuine. Goku was more than likely telling the truth.

"If you didn't…" Gohan said, "Then who did?"

"I think I may have an answer to that," ChiChi spoke up. When they'd all turned to look at her, she said, "After Goku had left Mariya for me, I was a horrible person about it for a long time. But, eventually, I could see the toll that it had taken on her. So I set her up with my best friend, whose name was Anthony. He was always a bit…rough, though."

Avery and Michelle both gasped. "Anthony? Anthony Pemter?" Avery asked, and ChiChi, shocked, nodded.

"Are you fucking **kidding** me?!" Michelle asked incredulously. "Do you mean to tell me that the man who is Jenifyr's father slept with Mrs. Stone, somehow managed to convince her that it was Goku she'd slept with, then moved on to abuse my aunt?!"

"Wait, what?" Gohan asked, really confused now.

Avery sighed and said, "Okay, we need to figure this out, since apparently, all of us are involved. Can we sit down?" Gohan nodded, and they all sat on the couch, Mariya and Jenifyr on one end, Avery and Michelle on the other, and Gohan between Goku and ChiChi in the middle.

"So, what we know happened is this," Avery began. "Mrs. Stone was left by Mr. Sondë for Mrs. Sondë. Afterwards, Mrs. Sondë set up Mrs. Stone with Anthony Pemter…"

"Who is my father," Jenifyr said. "If what Mr. Sondë says is true, and that he and my mom never slept together. After that, Anthony left Mrs. Stone…"

"And ended up with my Aunt Isobel," Michelle finished. "So that's that story, but that doesn't explain what you were doing with Antonio, Mrs. Stone."

"My mind is unstable," Mariya replied in a dead sort of voice. "In my blind thirst for revenge, I was willing to use anyone who was willing to be used. And Antonio just happened to be there. I think he stuck with me because I was like him. We're both insane."

"You aren't insane, Mom…"

"Yes, Jenifyr, I am. Or, rather, I was. I'm still horribly disoriented, since the man who ChiChi said she set me up with claimed that his name was Anthony Stone. But then he said that Jenifyr wasn't his daughter, and he left us. So I was left with Jenifyr. And…somehow, my mind transferred the grief from Anthony leaving to Goku. And…I never thought to question it. I mean, it was my own **mind**…How could I not know my own mind?"

'I have a pretty good idea,' Gohan thought uncomfortably. Aloud, he said, "All right…Obviously, this day is too much for everyone. If you all want, you all can stay here, or you can go to your own homes. We can figure the rest of this out tomorrow."

Suddenly, a knock on the door sounded. Wary, Gohan went to answer the door, and opened it to find a man standing there who looked just like Avery. "Can I help you, sir?" Gohan asked, and the man nodded.

"I was just contacted by my niece via text message, and I think that this twisted story is finally coming to light. We can help. I'm Avery's father, Avery Ratcliffe, Sr. With me, I've got Beatrice Ratcliffe, Isobel Belafonte, and Michael Belafonte. May we come in?" Gohan just stepped back, nodding, wondering when this day would end so that his brain could be left to recover. The four new adults made their way into the house, and one of the women said, "I'm Isobel Belafonte. Both Anthony Pemter and Antonio Esperar want me. Both are…not quite in their own right minds."

"Anthony left me for you," Mariya said, still in that same dead tone.

Isobel looked at her, eyes wide. "You're the woman he said he tricked?"

"Tricked?" Gohan asked, and Isobel nodded, before another woman introduced herself as Beatrice Ratcliffe and began speaking.

"We'd all heard his story countless times," Beatrice said. "He always bragged about some girl he'd bedded and managed to delude into thinking that she'd slept with someone else. I never expected that girl to be the mother of one of my daughter's closest friends," she said, moving toward Mariya. "I'm so sorry for what he put you through, Mrs. Stone."

"That's a false name," Mariya said, though she took Beatrice's hand. "Call me Mariya, if you would." Beatrice nodded, and then a man who had the same color hair as Michelle stepped forward, introducing himself.

"I'm Michael Belafonte, Isobel's brother, and Anthony Pemter is a bastard," he said bluntly. "After he'd left Mariya, he'd moved onto my sister, and proceeded to abuse her. I'd rather not go into any more detail than that, but suffice it to say that he was extremely brutal. Before him was Antonio Esperar, whom Isobel left. I think we can all find it safe to say that Isobel's leaving drove him to obsession with getting her back. So deep did his obsession run that he'd be willing to do anything for someone who promised to bring her back to him."

At this, he looked at Mariya, who bowed her head silently. Then, he said, "I can hardly blame you, Mariya, for doing what you did. You were manipulated by Anthony Pemter, who is a selfish, abusive asshole who enjoys tormenting people far more than any sane person should."

Silence followed this pronouncement, until Mariya gasped and said, "Antonio is still driving!"

"No he isn't," Beatrice replied. "We managed to slow him down and get him to pull over before he hurt himself or anyone else. So he's fine, you're fine, we're all fine."

"The only one who isn't is Anthony," Avery Sr. said darkly. "But he's none of your concern, while at the same time he's concerned with all of us. He's already in prison, but his first parole hearing comes up next June. If you want, you can testify to all that he's done and we'll see if we can get him stuck in there for life."

Gohan told him that they'd think about it, and Avery Sr. nodded before beckoning to his son and niece, both of whom smiled at Gohan as they left. After the others had gone, all who were left were Jenifyr and Mariya.

"Goku, Gohan…ChiChi…" Mariya said, then faltered. "I'm so…so sorry for what I tried to do to you, and for what I inadvertently put Gohan through. I…I don't know what was wrong with me."

"You were manipulated by an evil man with no concept of morals," Gohan replied. "Mariya-sensei - "

"How long has it been since you last called me that?" Mariya said quietly, smiling.

Gohan grinned and said, "Well, since you don't want to be called Mrs. Stone, I suppose that's the only thing I can call you. Anyway…you were not in your right mind. And as you've seen, people not in control of their minds are notoriously easy to manipulate. We've all suffered as a result of this man who probably only did it for kicks. But I want you to know that…I don't hold it against you. I can't speak for my parents, but…I just wanted you to know."

Mariya nodded, tears starting to fall down her cheeks again. Goku and ChiChi remained silent, until Goku said, "Mariya, I can't help but feel like this is my fault. If I hadn't left you like I had, then ChiChi wouldn't have set you up with Pemter, and none of this would have happened. I'm so sorry, Mariya."

ChiChi bit her lip before saying, "If anything, it's my fault for bringing you into contact with Anthony. He was my best friend when we were kids, and no matter how rough he was, he was always repentant, and he was always going to therapy sessions. He…had a rough childhood, and sometimes he couldn't help but take it out on the people around him, since he couldn't take it out on his abusive, alcholic parents.

"Tell you what," Goku said, grinning. "If you can forgive us, we can forgive you." Gohan smirked and shook his head; his father had practically stolen his words to Jenifyr.

Mariya was quiet for a long while, until finally, she nodded and said, "I forgive the both of you."

"Then we forgive you," ChiChi said. "I'd like us to be friends, Mariya, and I want to be able to help you past this. If you'll let me, that is."

"I'd…like that," Mariya said, and she and ChiChi stood up and embraced. They were a bit hesitant, but soon enough, they were bawling into each other's shoulders.

Gohan watched for a minute, then looked at Jenifyr. "I stand by what I said, you know," he said quietly, and Jenifyr looked at him. "Even if you aren't actually my sister…maybe we can be friends. Good friends."

"That would be nice," Jenifyr said, and Gohan grinned. They both looked up at their parents as Mariya told Jenifyr that they were leaving. Gohan waved to the two of them as they left, and then flopped backward onto the couch.

"What the hell happened today?" he wondered aloud, and heard his father laugh.

"Well, Gohan, I'd say that a whole bunch of secrets that were supposed to stay secret got brought into the light today. That's what the hell happened."

Gohan laughed himself. Then, he said, "Who'd have thought that we had a connection to the Belafontes, the Ratcliffes, **and** the Stones? Besides, you know, being the victim of the Snotty Squad."

Goku and ChiChi both laughed. "This has been a day of insanity," ChiChi said. "I'll imagine that you'll want to tell Videl about it the second she comes back."

Gohan started; he'd completely forgotten that Videl was coming home tomorrow. He'd have some interesting things to tell her, no doubt.

'Insanity doesn't even begin to cover what's happened today, but I'll try to keep it sane enough so that Videl can keep up. She'll be able to, to be sure; it's why I love her.'

-TBC-

**A/N:** And there you have it. The story decided to make itself this complicated some time around after I had written the Intermission. That last scene quickly morphed the entire subplot, and this is its culmination, which also happened to become central enough to the story to become a major turning-point.

After this is the final chapter of His Saving Grace, which will be a songfic chapter, and a complete wind-down from all the things that happened in this chapter. It'll also be the lemon scene. I was surprised that I didn't write more for this story, but the other ideas I had just...kind of made it irrelevant. Except this one, the one about the centric character pairing. Even though it saddens me to finish the story, I also feel rather...accomplished. I'll blab more after the next chapter, which will be posted tomorrow, even if I write it tonight. Then again, I may just write it and post it, and that'll be that. I haven't decided yet.

Anyway, hopefully, you can see how Avery, Michelle, James, and Jenifyr are all connected with each other and with Gohan. This whole thing went far beyond childish cruelty, farther than anyone could have imagined. But now everyone knows, save James. But Jenifyr will tell him everything, of course. :P I've actually been waiting for this, because it's been bouncing around in my head for so long it's made my head hurt various times. But now it's here, and now you can see the full complexity of this story.

The moral I hope that you got from this chapter is, basically: Nothing in life is simple. Ever. Even something as simple as childish pranks can have roots that are as long and twisted as this.

On an unrelated note, the title is part of a lyric from "Disturbia" by Rihanna.

On another unrelated note, this is the longest chapter for this story that I've written, even without the disclaimer, warnings, and Author's Notes.

If I confused you too badly, simply post a review or drop me a PM and I'll attempt to explain it as best I can. :)

And on that note, review please!

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	21. You Know You're My Saving Grace

**Disclaimer:** None of the characters that are recognizable belong to me. Avery Ratcliffe, Michelle Belafonte, James Pickett, Jenifyr Stone, all their relations, and any other unrecognizable characters are original characters, and any resemblance between them and characters found elsewhere are purely coincidental. In addition, I do not own the lyrics to the song used in this chapter, nor do I own the song.

**Warning:** There is lemon in this chapter, meaning acts of a sexual nature are to be found here. If you don't like lemon, then what are you doing looking through Romance fanfiction?

**His Saving Grace**

**Chapter 17 - You Know You're My Saving Grace**

Gohan had told Videl everything the second he'd seen her. She had listened with ever-increasing incredulity, actually gasping at the revelations about Mariya, Jenifyr, and Gohan's parents. She'd shaken her head for so long, Gohan was having trouble believing it was still attached to her neck.

After he'd gotten her up to speed while sitting in his bedroom, they were free to pursue…other interests. Gohan mentioned this, a grin on his face, and Videl had replied with a smile of her own, "So we are. What other interests did you have in mind?"

"I can show you better than I can tell you," Gohan replied as he kissed her softly.

_-Remember those walls I built? Well, baby, they're tumbling down.-  
__-And they didn't even put up a fight, they didn't even make a sound.-_

"Videl," Gohan moaned as she ran her lips over his collarbone, her hands running up and down his back. "Videl, there's something else I want to show you."

"Then show me," she said in a sultry, playful tone, one that made Gohan's hair rise…along with other parts of his anatomy. He kissed her, sighing. "Kami, but I missed you," he whispered, before he opened his eyes to stare into her own.

"Remember when you came into my mind a few years ago?" he asked softly, and Videl nodded, completely and utterly inebriated by Gohan's scent and kisses. "And how I built that castle?" Another nod.

_-I found a way to let you in, but I never really had a doubt.-_

Suddenly, Videl felt a nudge on the edge of her conscious, and she reached out toward it, only to find it hooking into her, tugging her gently along. She realized it was Gohan, and allowed herself to relax as she continued to stare into his eyes. She let her mind be tugged along by his while she let herself become lost in those dark, still-unreadable eyes.

"See?" Gohan said, a grin in his voice. Videl looked around to see the castle was indeed crumbling. When she looked at him, alarmed, he grinned wider and said, "Look." She complied, and watched as the tallest tower finally crumbled, leaving the id dragon in its ball to fall down, and down, and down.

She let out a cry just as Gohan laughed and the id dragon stopped. It seemed to have fallen into a huge red sea. She dragged Gohan to the sea's edge, unable to believe what she was seeing. She watched the id dragon out at sea, seemingly content in its ball. Suddenly, the ball shimmered and vanished, leaving the id dragon to fall into the red sea.

"Gohan!" Videl yelled. "Why did you do that? How do you even know what this red stuff is?"

"Because it's my mind," Gohan said, amused. "Go ahead, place a hand in it. You'll understand why the id dragon hasn't resurfaced yet." Still wary, Videl complied. The second her hand touched the red aquatic substance, she gasped as her vision filled with images.

Images of her. All around her was a sense of warmth, of acceptance, of…of love. In a moment of brilliant understanding, Videl thought, 'This sea is the sea of love Gohan has for me. That's why the id dragon isn't making problems. The positive emotion completely overwhelms all the negative emotions that took the form of the id dragon. I helped him overcome this.'

She drew her hand back to look up into Gohan's face. And he had that truly happy smile on his face, eyes illuminated. She could see the specks of midnight blue in his eyes.

_-Standing in the light of your halo, I got my angel now.-_

"I didn't need a castle to keep the id dragon contained, because all of the negative emotions I felt have been washed away," Gohan said, still smiling. He couldn't help but stare at her and smile. A sun had risen behind her, framing her head and making it look as though she had a halo of sunlight around her head.

_-It's like I've been awakened, every rule I had you breaking.-  
__-It's the risk that I'm taking, I ain't never gonna shut you out.-_

He opened his eyes at the same time Videl did, and found his lips being attacked by hers. He grinned and kissed her back, threading his fingers through her hair. 'I wish I'd let her into my mind more often, and sooner. Then maybe, just maybe, the whole thing with Jenifyr would never happened. And he and Videl would've been together for far longer than this.

_-Everywhere I'm looking now, I'm surrounded by your embrace.-  
__-Baby, I can see your halo; you know you're my saving grace.-_

Her arms were everywhere on him and around him, and his arms were doing the same. He never wanted to let her go. Their kiss intensified. He pulled away for a second, to determine if her thoughts were going the same way his were. Judging by the expression on her face and the desire in her eyes, they were both thinking about the same thing.

_-You're everything I need and more; it's written all over your face.-  
__-Baby, I can feel your halo; pray it won't fade away.-_

She thought she was the only one who was rendered completely helpless; Gohan wasn't all that inclined to let her think otherwise. She completely entranced him, and every day, particularly when they got like this, he marveled at how she'd come into his life and made herself so central to his being.

_-I can feel your halo, halo, halo. I can see your halo, halo, halo.-  
__-I can feel your halo, halo, halo. I can see your halo, halo, halo.-_

Videl's hands slipped under his shirt at the same time his did hers, and they both pushed up together. Videl's shirt came off first, since it has less of a way to go. She had a lot more fun removing Gohan's however, kissing her way up his stomach and chest to his lips. He was panting now, making Videl feel positively giddy.

_-Hit me like a ray of sun, burning through my darkest night.-  
__-You're the only one that I want; I think I'm addicted to your light.-_

Gohan's head dipped down to nuzzle the side of her neck, and she gasped. Then his shadowed cheek moved down to rub against the top of her breast, and her vision went white for a split second. She did her best to keep her scream in, and largely succeeded, only letting out a squeak.

Gohan smirked as he heard the noise, grabbing her bra with his teeth and dragging it out a short distance before letting it snap back. Videl gasped again, and this time she whispered, "Oh, Gohan." Gohan quickly decided that he rather liked his name coming from her lips like that, and he did it again.

Videl let out a yelp, and Gohan laughed. "Kami, but I love the noises you make sometimes," he said in a voice made husky with desire. "Let's see what other noises you can make…" his voice trailed off for a second before he nipped her stomach.

"Gohan!"

"Yes?" he said, the picture of innocence…with tousled hair, lust-darkened eyes, slightly bruised lips, and a devilish grin on his lips.

_-I swore I'd never fall again, but this don't even feel like falling.-  
__-Gravity can't begin to pull me back to the ground again.-_

Gohan felt like he was on cloud nine as he worked his way down Videl's body, grinning every time he found a spot that made her make a new noise. Suddenly, Videl flipped him over so that he was on his back, and he grinned again.

He growled soon after as Videl tugged on his bottom lip with her teeth. She didn't return to his mouth, however, choosing instead to move down to his pulse point, pressing her lips to it. His head rolled back of its own accord, and he moaned as Videl moved her lips across his throat.

He may as well have been floating, so mindlessly blissful was he. He managed to restrain himself to breathing heavily as Videl continued her torturous journey down his torso and stomach. She nipped at the area around his navel, and his hips bucked as he let out a groan.

He looked down to see Videl with a grin of her own as she undid his jeans and pulled them down. Abruptly deciding that Videl was **not** going to have on more clothes than him, Gohan grabbed her by the arms and dragged her back up to meet his lips, letting out another growl. His hands worked their way down to Videl's own jeans, which he undid and slid down her legs as he kicked his off.

_-It's like I've been awakened, every rule I had you breaking.-  
__-It's the risk that I'm taking. I ain't never gonna shut you out.-_

Videl found that she rather liked this overpowering side to Gohan's personality, and kissed him for all she was worth as his arms wrapped around her. She shivered pleasantly at the sensation of Gohan's body heat and toned arms all around her. She was slipping under, way under, and she couldn't bring herself to care.

She couldn't help herself as she whispered, "I love you, Gohan."

He froze for only a second. Then, he whispered in her ear, "I love you, too." And she melted as he kissed her with a fiery passion she'd never felt before, even from him. Her hands rested against his chest, and she could feel his heart beat strongly against her hands. In a rare moment of possessiveness, she thought, 'His heart will beat for me, and only me. The same way mine beats for him.'

_-Everywhere I'm looking now, I'm surrounded by your embrace.-  
__-Baby, I can see your halo; you know you're my saving grace.-  
__-You're everything I need and more; it's written all over your face.-  
__-Baby, I can feel your halo; pray it won't fade away.-_

Videl's hands were slipping under the waistband of his boxer shorts, and Gohan groaned as her hands quested around his hips and over his butt. He jumped when she pinched him slightly, and growled as he pinched her harder, making her squeak again. A grin crossed his face as he looped his finger around the band of her panties and dragged them down slowly.

She seemed to take the hint and wiggled her hips a little, making him groan and rock his own hips as he pushed her panties further down until she kicked them off.

He allowed Videl to push his boxers down and kicked them off, before thrusting his hips into hers, making her throw her head back. He used her distraction to unhook her bra and slip the straps down and off her arms before throwing it somewhere.

His head dipped down as he rubbed his cheek against her bare breast, making her sigh his name. He grinned as he ran his tongue across one of her nipples, and she gasped loudly, her head snapping down to lock his gaze in hers. Her own hands began moving everywhere, over his shoulders, down his back, over his hips.

Then she grabbed him, and he tossed his own head back as he rolled his hips into her hand.

_-I can feel your halo, halo, halo. I can see your halo, halo, halo.-  
__-I can feel your halo, halo, halo. I can see your halo, halo, halo.-_

Videl was past giddy, going on insane. The noises he was making, the feel of him in her hand, his heat as he trapped her body against his, his scent, it was all driving her mad. She wanted to ask him whether he had a condom or not, but currently, her mind was drugged beyond all belief. Besides, the idea of him and only him in her was too good an idea to pass up.

She guided him gently toward her core, and waited as he froze and shuddered. "You want to do this…" his voice trailed off, and Videl nodded, pressing her lips to his.

_-Halo…-_

Gohan was thinking enough to realize that, if they went through with this, then they may have a baby. That one thought brought him such unbelievable happiness that his vision was golden and white as he rocked his hips forward, pushing gently until he encountered her barrier. He increased the pressure, whispering apologies to her as he pushed harder and harder.

Suddenly, she let out a pained noise as Gohan felt the resistance pass, and then he was fully sheathed in Videl. His vision changed from golden to white as he waited for Videl to give him the okay. 'She's such an angel,' he thought idly.

_-Halo…-_

Finally, Videl nodded, and Gohan pulled out a bit, then pushed back in. His eyes rolled back into his head, she felt so **good**. So…natural. Right. He felt like he'd been waiting his whole life for this, this one moment in time when he and Videl were as close as anyone could be.

Videl began to thrust her hips against his, and they as one began to move faster, hips moving in a symphony only they could hear.

_-Everywhere I'm looking now, I'm surrounded by your embrace.-  
__-Baby, I can see your halo; you know you're my saving grace.-_

Videl could feel the pressure building in her, and judging by Gohan's increasingly tight expression, he was feeling the same thing. She kissed him again, all pain gone, and silently delighted in how he kissed her back as though his life depended on it.

She was here, she was with him, she was happy. Wherever Gohan was, Videl now realized, was where she was meant to be. She never wanted to leave him again, and if she had her way, she'd never have to.

_-You're everything I need and more; it's written all over your face.-  
__-Baby, I can feel your halo; pray it won't fade away.-_

Suddenly, something in Gohan snapped, and he gasped as his hips rocked uncontrollably against Videl's. His vision totally white, he caught a glimpse of Videl, his Videl, his angel. She stood in front of a brilliant sun, yet she was brighter than the sun yet.

He felt her mirroring his actions, both moving with wild abandon. He loved it, he loved her, he loved it all.

As he began to descend from that burning peak he'd been at, and he and Videl both began to calm, Gohan smiled and hugged Videl, feeling her arms snake around him. Yes, she was his Videl, his angel. She'd saved him so many times; be it from his mother, himself, his enemies, or his fear of forever being alone, she'd been there to save him every time. He needed her.

There was still a lot to deal with: the parole hearing for Anthony Pemter, repairing his relationship with Jenifyr, helping her and her mother get through what had happened, getting used to seeing a lot more of Avery and Michelle, actually becoming friends with the people who'd seemed so intent on making his life miserable when they were children, living the rest of his life, going to college, getting a job, making a life.

But even though living his life was a daunting prospect, he knew that he could face it with Videl, as long as she stayed with him. While they were together, he wasn't afraid of anything. She'd saved him so many times, and he had no doubt she would continue to.

She was his saving grace. He had no intention of letting her go.

_-I can feel your halo, halo, halo. I can see your halo, halo, halo.-  
__-I can feel your halo, halo, halo. I can see your halo, halo, halo.-_

_~Fin~_

**A/N: **And that is His Saving Grace. In all honesty, I found the scene almost disappointingly short, but I couldn't figure out a way to stretch it out without it becoming repetitive. This was also actually the shortest actual chapter in the fanfiction. XD Go figure.

Anyway...Wow...I'm done with the story. It's really weird, actually. It's been a very interesting trip these past three months (yes, I finished a whole fanfiction in three months; I'm rather proud of myself, actually), to say the least. I feel kind of sad, now that it's over, but I also feel extremely triumphant that, despite all the bucks this story made, and all the changes it went through, it still came out as something I can say that I was (and am) proud to have written. I hope you liked the story, and I want to thank all of those readers that stuck with it through the highs and the lows, Kami knows there were enough of them. This fanfiction really was quite the rollercoaster ride.

In all actuality, despite the risk of sounding horribly lame and cliché, I've had the last line of the chapter in my head ever since I got the idea after listening to the song. Those two sentences, one five words long, the other eight, are what I modeled this whole fanfiction around. I like to think I did a fairly good job.

I really do hope you liked the story. I don't know how often I'll come back to do A/U fanfictions, but it was definitely a refreshing and educating experience to make up my own, unique plotline. I may and probably will definitely do another of these RL A/U fics later on down the road. But for right now, His Saving Grace is enough.

The title is part of a lyric from "Halo" by Beyoncé, the lyrics are the lyrics to the same song, and the entire fanfiction was named after the song. It seemed only fitting that I model the final chapter after its inspiration. I'd suggest listening to the song as you read the chapter, mostly because I think it'd help you understand some of the underlying emotions Gohan and Videl felt, but also because I'm a shameless Beyoncé fan and this is my favorite song of hers. :D;;

Review, please, and thank you again for sticking with the story to its completion.

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	22. Extra AN: Other Characters

Below you will find the complete list of 38 other characters involved in this world, excluding Videl. Where appropriate, positions of authority and relations to the children of each family are provided. I'll leave you to draw the conclusions for yourself.

Not all of these people were mentioned in the fanfiction, but they are all in the fanfiction. Hopefully this will help you be able to keep better track of all the characters in this alternate universe.

* * *

Filcure Family:  
Felicia Filcure - mother  
Videl Filcure

Ratcliffe Family:  
Avery Ratcliffe, Sr. - father  
Beatrice Ratcliffe - mother  
Avery Ratcliffe, Jr.

Belafonte Family:  
Michael Belafonte - father  
Isobel Belafonte - maternal aunt  
Michelle Belafonte

Pickett Family:  
Maurice Pickett - grandfather  
Amelia Pickett - grandmother  
James Pickett

Stone Family:  
Mariya Stone - mother  
Jenifyr Stone

Jasso Family:  
Geoffrey Jasso - father  
Missy Jasso - mother  
Matthew Jasso-Helod

East City Middle School Tennis Team:  
Jeremy Handel - Captain  
Gina Tyler - Co-Captain  
Mikayla Unmeyer (Elliott's twin)  
Elliott Unmeyer (Mikayla's twin)  
Robert Erickson  
Stephanie LaFleur  
Evan Williams  
Kathryn Stevenson

Orange Star Junior High School Tennis Team:  
George Dolby - Coach ("Coach")  
Harold Dolby - Assistant Coach ("Dolby")  
Matthew Jasso-Helod - Co-Captain  
Greg Yalert  
Emily Morgane  
Amari Beltane  
Jack Smith  
Monica Stevenson  
Melissa Mundik

Orange Star Junior High School Triple Tenet Club:  
Mariya Stone - sensei  
Greg Yalert  
Emily Morgane  
Videl Filcure  
Matthew Jasso-Helod

Orange Star Junior High School Personnel:  
Amaranthus Rose Botani - school nurse  
George Dolby - science teacher  
Harold Dolby - math teacher  
Felicia Filcure - Spanish teacher  
Mariya Stone - social studies teacher (8th)

Morgane Family:  
Jedidiah Morgane - father  
Barbara Morgane - stepmother  
Emily Morgane

Stevenson Families:  
Jonathan Stevenson - father  
Monica Stevenson

Richard Stevenson - father  
Kathryn Stevenson

Other:  
Dr. Rowan Hyacinthus Botani  
Anthony Pemter  
Antonio Esperar


End file.
